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Chapter Text

Popstar was always so beautiful from space, as was the opinion of the few that had the opportunity to see it in the orbit of the Gamble Galaxy. It took the shape of a five-point star, in parallel to its namesake, unlike most of the other celestial objects that surrounded the star. A few of the beings that have had a chance to observe the galaxy from space – and were currently doing so now – were the many workers and inhabitants that resided upon a huge, magnificent warship that was currently flying through the star-speckled atmosphere to a certain destination. This warship was elongated in shape and was heavily armoured with thick steel plates, also sporting weaponry that ranged from its accurate laser canons to its powerful engines. The ship itself seemed to also be designed for intimidation as well as practicality: it donned three pairs of wings that stretched out like a demon’s, and a mask that decorated the figurehead which strongly resembled the commander of the crew upon the vessel.

The interior of the ship was currently buzzing with mild activity, especially the main control room that stood on the bridge of the vessel where the more higher-ranking officers worked in ensuring smooth travels. Many beings of different shapes and sizes were currently there, tending to the control panel of the battleship. In particular, one short, funny looking creature with large feet for its size and short stubby hands had their big brown eyes currently narrowed in concentration when a bleep sounded on the control panel to signify an incoming transmission. The creature was almost round in appearance and had orange fur which lined its body. A white sailor’s hat perched upon its head. From its simple (and relatively cute) appearance, no one would have guessed that this was one of highest-ranking crew members – a faithful aide to the Commander himself.

“Sailor Waddle Dee here. What is it?”  The creature spoke in a rather high voice (which should have been impossible, considering that they had no discernible mouth), pressing a button on a control panel that enabled him to acknowledge the message that had just been requested to receive. Apparently, one of the servants that monitored the Battleship Halberd’s atmosphere scanners had noticed that they had caught a slight disturbance. It didn’t seem to be major from the way the subordinate worded the statement, but he would report to the leader as his duty demanded, should there be any cause for concern. “Thank you. I’ll make sure I inform Lord Meta Knight as soon as possible.”

With a sigh, the servant cut off the communication. No matter the scale, things like this worried him, but he shrugged that feeling off for now. Sailor Dee was known to be very paranoid amongst the people who knew him, but that was also an emotion which was greatly shared by his superior. However, his superior managed to use that wariness as preparation to achieve his many victories in battle, but the Waddle Dee felt his own paranoia was sometimes very needless, and instead made a situation seem much more dire then it was necessary.

“Where’re you goin’?” A demanding voice called from the other side of the room, its pitch not controlled whatsoever, and it made many of the people in the room jump in surprise. Sailor Dee was one of those people, and he looked to see who had spoken – it was a tall, smartly dressed avian individual – renowned for his expertise in airship warfare and infamous for his short, volatile temper. Despite this figure’s higher rank and their wildly contrasting personalities, him and Sailor Dee were both very good friends.

“Hey, Captain Vul. Just going to go deliver a report to Lord Meta Knight. You don’t have to worry about it.” Sailor Dee reassured.

“And why didn’t the report come to me first?” The captain insisted. “I’m the captain of this ship!”

“It isn’t that major, sir! You can listen to it if you want.” Sailor Dee looked at his feet. “Sorry, maybe I should have let you receive the transmission instead.”

“It’s fine, soldier.” Captain Vul sighed, holding down his hands behind his back. “But you know I like to be updated with everything that goes on! Now, hurry along and deliver your message.” 

Smiling to himself, Sailor Dee sped-walked down the corridor, looking for his leader to inform him of the small anomaly. Most likely, the commander was in his study doing paperwork or meditating – or training in the appropriate room built for that purpose. So, the servant began to make his way to one of those rooms before a deep, rumbling voice spoke up from behind him. “Sailor Dee. Are you looking for someone?”

The Waddle Dee jumped violently – and not for the first time today, may he add – and spun around, coming face to face with a certain round, masked man. He had no idea how his commander was so stealthy, considering the fact that his armour clanked as he walked. But then again, his superior was shrouded in mystery and he aimed to keep it that way. Cold, intimidating, strict, and incredibly intelligent, Sir Meta Knight could somehow make an entire room weigh into his presence despite his rather short stature and was one of those people that demanded respect without even speaking a word. Sailor Dee wasn’t sure what exactly gave him that effect, but he suspected that it was a bit of everything – the knightly armour he wore, the fact that he was never seen in public without his mask (which put another layer of mysteriousness onto him), his impossibly deep voice… or maybe it was those glowing yellow eyes that stared unblinkingly into your own, always brimming with controlled fire. “L-Lord Meta Knight! You scared me.” Sailor Dee finally spoke when he had recovered from his surprise, bowing respectfully. “It’s quite funny you should say that, because it was actually you who I was looking for, sir!”

The Knight dipped his head – or body, considering that his form was spherical. He had wrapped his gold-trimmed cape around his body as usual, so only the slit in his mask from where his eyes shone through and upwards was visible. “My apologies for startling you, that was not my intention. What was it you wished to tell me?”

“According to the Sir Kibble that monitors the Halberd’s scanners, they’ve picked up some disturbances throughout the atmosphere. This may mean that we have to reduce our speed in order to avoid it, my Lord.” The Dee advised.

“A disturbance? Of what sort?” The Knight questioned, eyes glinting. This was unprecedented, and he hoped that whatever was causing the disturbance would be gone soon so he could arrive at their destination as soon as possible. The fact that they had to reduce speed wasn’t a big deal, as the Knight had made sure that they would arrive one day early, but one should still be cautious.

“I-I think it’s just some junk floating in space around fifty kilometres away or something, sir. From the way the Kibble had worded it, it didn’t sound too urgent, but I still felt like I should tell you about it.” He stated, getting a little nervous from the way the warrior was looking at him. “A vacuum somewhere in the galaxy means the junk is being pulled towards our direction so we can’t avoid it.”

“Remnants from the destruction of the headquarters of Haltmann Works invasion, I suppose.” Meta Knight looked away thoughtfully for a few seconds, before continuing with a voice tighter than before. “The Halberd can withstand medium collisions from that; however, it seems we do not know how heavily the remnants litter the atmosphere. Thank you for informing me of this; be sure to stay cautious and forward any reports of this situation back to me. Give the order to reduce the speed of the Halberd – I will be situated in my office should anything else require my attention.”

The Waddle Dee blushed slightly at his word of thanks, and saluted. At times like this, his cautiousness served him well. “I’ll be sure to do that, master!”

After Meta Knight had departed, Sailor Dee headed back to the control room, sitting down at his post after echoing his given orders and humming to himself, chatting to the other members of the crew that boarded the bridge. The floating rubbish that had been reported was now in sight, and Sailor Dee approached the window to get a closer view. There were huge sheets of metal that floated through the inky abyss, wiry blocks of concrete, shimmering shards of glass… Something inside the Waddle Dee clenched. This wasn’t something that should have been dismissed as a minor event! What was that Sir Kibble thinking?

“It isn’t that major?” Captain Vul moved to stand next to Sailor Dee, his teeth gritted. “We have to avoid that immediately – look! Some of the shrapnel is as large as the Halberd itself, it could cause some serious damage to the hull!” The Captain faced the room, his voice loud and very agitated. “Well don’t just stand there, you idiots! Retract the wings immediately and commence evasive manoeuvres, full power!”

“I’m sorry, I… I had no idea, Captain! T-the report said it was only a Risk Two level threat! The Kibble said that it was only a few bits floating around so it won’t cause any lasting damage…” Sailor Dee countered, shocked, and the light on the control panel bleeped again. He immediately moved to transmit it before the entire room suddenly shook violently, causing everyone to teeter off balance.

“Something’s collided with the hull!” Captain Vul hissed, and something slammed against it again with a loud boom. This time, the lights of the room actually flickered. “Maximum power to the thrusters! I want us out of there immediately, do you hear me?”

“What is going on?” A familiar voice demanded, racing towards them in a sweep of a purple-blue cape. Meta Knight’s eyes widened slightly when he saw the mess that they were currently in, and his smouldering gaze snapped to Sailor Dee, who flinched violently. Yet, his tone was level as always, albeit with an angered edge. “You informed me that this was minor.”

“Lord Meta Knight, a-apparently the residue of the Haltmann Works headquarters is a lot worse than the report suggested…” The Waddle Dee stuttered fearfully, releasing a ‘woah!’ as the strongest slam yet rocked the ship. “I-I would have told you if something was seriously wrong…”

“Fire up the cannons!” Meta Knight shouted over the commotion, making everyone burst into vigorous activity. The commander stationed himself at the wheel and slamming the button that turned off autopilot mode, deciding that it was much safer if he guided the battleship manually. “We shall blast our way through.”

“What?!” Captain Vul looked down at his superior, so stunned at this order that it made him forget his formality for a second. “Shouldn’t we try to go backwards, or up and out of the way?”

“And risk any shrapnel slamming above the bridge?” The Knight replied evenly, veering the warship away from a piece of rubbish that floated dangerously towards them after he had faced the Captain, who nodded wordlessly at that reasoning. He stepped aside and allowed the Captain to take the wheel so he could fully address his crewmates. “Due to our misjudgements, this ship is in grave danger.  We have no other choice. Sailor Dee—” He addressed his aide in a harsh tone, who snapped into attention. “If you speak the truth and the scanners stated that the remnants of the Headquarters were minor, then there is something off with the scanning system of the Halberd itself.”

“Impossible!” Captain Vul shrieked, looking over his shoulder for a second. “I personally made sure that everythin’ was in order before we departed from Dreamland!”

“I am certain that you did, Captain…” Meta Knight then trailed off and his eyes dimmed slightly as if he was suddenly captivated with another thought. Sailor Dee stared into his lord’s masked face, trying to figure out what was on his mind, but it was impossible from the way that nothing in his voice or even his eyes conveyed how he was feeling; another trait that made him especially enigmatic.

“Lord Meta Knight! Sir!” A voice called out from the other side of the bridge, followed by a drumroll of footsteps as a few armoured beings crowded into the room. These were the Meta-Knights, the most trusted and elite warriors upon the Halberd that were certainly worthy of inheriting the namesake of their master. The one that had spoken was a squat knight that sported a skull-shaped mask and a horned helmet, with a huge battle-axe was strapped to his back. “What’s— oh my Nova…” The appropriately named Axe Knight gasped as he pressed his hands against the control panel, his widened red eyes following the trails of shrapnel.

“How did this happen, sir? How did we get into this situation?!” A horrified female voice whispered, originating from Mace Knight, a Meta-Knight who wore purple robes and armour along with a three-pronged helmet with a red-tinted visor.

“L-Long story.” Sailor Dee tried to control his frantic breathing. They were going to die, careening into that planet…

“On a normal occasion, the scanners of the Battleship Halberd must have detected events such as this, Lord Meta Knight.” A red mechanical knight clutching a yellow javelin questioned with no infliction; again, appropriately named ‘Javelin Knight’. “At our present route, there is a 4.66% chance that we will escape with the Battleship Halberd intact.”

Sailor Dee watched with worried eyes as the blast of a cannon made some of the rubbish in front of them explode. If we keep at this, we’re going to lose power. We have to wait somewhere for the stuff to float away… like a nearby planet or star or something…

BOOM!

“What was that?!” Sailor Dee squeaked out in alarm.

Alarm bells blared throughout the ship, the lights on the wall of the bridge flashing red when a deafening explosion rattled the warship. Sailor Dee heard Meta Knight curse under his breath when he looked at the screen that monitored the condition of the Halberd. The sailor looked over to see what had caused that sort of reaction from him – the blue screen had a circle of red glaring in the bottom right corner. It made his heart plummet to the ground. “One of the primary engines has been destroyed, sir!”

“Captain Vul. When you see a suitable opening, land the ship on the nearest planet while continuing to fire on incoming dust and direct most of the power to the emergency thrusters for evasive manoeuvres southward. We cannot sustain any more damage and that is indisputable.” Meta Knight’s voice was cold as he addressed the captain, yet maddeningly soft. Everyone lost their footing again when the Halberd swerved downwards at an alarming angle, so much so that everyone held on to anything that may steady themselves. “Sailor Dee, what is our closest course?”

“T-This nearby planet, master. There’s no information in any database about it – not even if it’s habitable or not – but we don’t have a choice.” The sailor’s throat was tight and his thoughts buzzing with fear. Was this his fault? Had he misjudged the severity of the situation put the entire crew in danger?

“Everyone, hold on!” Captain Vul yelled, and the Halberd tilted at an obtuse angle as it veered with alarming speed towards the green-tinted planet, turning the ship back on autopilot before also holding on tightly to some railing to steady himself. You’re going to die, his brain provided unhelpfully. This wasn’t how everyone expected the day to go…

CRASH! BANG!

“Ohmygoodness we’re going to die!” The Waddle Dee squeezed his eyes tightly, screaming out his raging thoughts before he could control himself, watching the ship fall closer and closer to the planet.

“Not helping, Sailor Dee!” Axe Knight yelled back, as the sounds of something thumping and crashing rang out throughout the ship, and a final boom sounded before the ship finally skidded to a halt, having slammed down onto the strange planet in a graceless emergency landing. The Waddle Dee dared to open his eyes and was surprised to find that trees now obscured the curved window of the bridge. Silence obscured the bridge, apart from heavy breathing as this terrifying experience had triggered everyone’s fight-or-flight response.

Sailor Dee’s thoughts immediately flew to whether Meta Knight was okay or not, as was typical for the most loyal servant on the Halberd. “Sir, sir!” He jumped into action and ran to his lord’s side, his voice high-pitched and worried. “Sir, are you alright?”

“Of course. Thank you for your concern.” He nodded to his servant and swiftly stood up – Sailor Dee exhaled in relief. “Has anybody sustained any injury?” Meta Knight’s deep bass rang throughout the tense chamber. There were mumblings of denial and shakes of heads. “I am truly thankful to hear that. Trident Knight, go and check upon the others. Prioritise the ones that work in the compartments in the hull.” He addressed the other purple-clad knight that wore a helmet with a golden crescent perched upon it who had been silent beforehand. The soldier bowed and departed without a word. “Status, Captain.”

Captain Vul winced, standing up and smoothing out his white and gold robes. “One of the primary engines are completely inoperable, Sir Meta Knight – luckily, none of the other engines were destroyed. Unfortunately, the antenna has also been destroyed, meaning we cannot receive or send any transmissions or distress calls to Sword and Blade Knight on Popstar. All other systems are operable, despite the hull receiving heavy dents.”

“Oh no.” Sailor Dee whispered. Two of Meta Knight’s best soldiers had stayed behind on Dreamland to patrol the area for danger while their mentor was away, and also to send any assistance should something go amiss. And now, their current situation rendered this impossible. “Can’t Javelin Knight send anything instead?”

“My transmitters currently cannot send any messages at this distance.” The robot replies in a matter-of-fact tone. The Meta-Knights groaned in disappointment as their only hope of outbound communication was dashed. “I apologise for my hardware limitations.”

“S’okay, Javelin, it’s not your fault. So, we’re just stranded here, then, on this foreign planet that we know nothing about?” Axe Knight would have crossed his arms if they were long enough to make that action possible.

“Perhaps not. How long will it take to repair the antenna?” Meta Knight demanded, to which Captain Vul replied:

“It can’t be repaired, sir, it’s completely gone. Neither can the engine, since it, well, exploded. We’re goin’ to need materials to repair it so if anyone can deliver ‘em here that would be great.” Captain Vul snapped. One could consider his tone disrespectful, but everyone was too stressed to care at the moment.

The masked Knight growled under his breath, his fist clenching. Sailor Dee completely understood that reaction. They had just repaired the battleship after the Haltmann Works invasion for it to get destroyed again – and that wasn’t even the first time! The number of times it had gotten damaged was just getting bothersome for everyone now. “An alteration of design to deal with these situations must be considered in the future. At present, we must find out as to why the scanners did not detect the fragments to their proper scale.” His eyes suddenly turned a sunset orange – a change of optical tint indicating puzzlement.

“You could check the logs that the scanner reported to the Halberd’s main server before it had communicated with the bridge to look for any anomalies.” Mace Knight offered quietly.

“Hmm. Good thinking, Mace Knight. It’ll also be logical if we question the Sir Kibble whom Sailor Dee spoke of.” It was impossible to tell what Meta Knight was thinking. “Soldiers, follow me.”

The crew obeyed, mumbling quietly to themselves as they made their way to the control centre of the Halberd that was situated behind a heavy steel door. “I’ve a feeling that Lord Meta Knight suspects something already, but he doesn’t want to make any assumptions.” Axe Knight whispered to Sailor Dee, making a few heads turn in his direction. A murmur of joint consideration rippled throughout the people that had been listening.

“Same here.” Sailor Dee was the one to voice his agreement; he’d suspected it from the commander’s sudden bout of deep thought.

Meta Knight opened the door to the control centre. The two beings that worked there spun around and snapped into attention as their commanding officer strode on the wooden floor with a clank of his sabatons and his cape wrapped around him in typical fashion. The party waited at the doorframe and watched the scene play out.

“S-Sir Meta Knight, we’re so glad you’re okay, and everyone else it seems, w-we had no idea how—” One of the creatures that had an appearance of an armoured wheel with an engine at the back; known as a Wheelie; began to speak with the large eyes on her side narrowed nervously. She stuttered to a stop when Meta Knight raised a hand for silence. The masked knight turned his piercing eyes to the other being – a short golden-armoured soldier with a wickedly sharp cutter-blade lining the front of the helmet all the way to the back.

“Cryston. You are responsible for reporting any suspicious activity that the scanners detect, are you not?” Meta Knight queries the Sir Kibble in an emotionless yet pressing tone, not quite hostile.

Cryston swallowed heavily. His eyes were not visible beneath the black visor of the sharp helmet, but Sailor Dee could imagine the soldier’s gaze trailing on the floor in dread at being under the scrutiny of the most feared swordsman of Dreamland. It was an effect that Meta Knight had on people who served under him but didn’t know him as a close ally. “That I am, Commander.” The Kibble bent his armoured form in a bow, his voice surprisingly steady.

“Then explain why in the name of the stars you called this a minor event that we didn’t need to be concerned about, huh?” Captain Vul burst out from behind his superior, his beak curled into a snarl. “All thanks to you, soldier, we have no way of communication, one of our primary engines is gone, and there’s absolutely no chance that we’ll get to Ripple Star, and it’s all because of you!”

The Kibble cringed further. “I’m… I’m sorry, Captain! It showed up as a Risk Two danger on the system—”

“Impossible! I personally checked when we left! The Halberd’s scanners have never been wrong, they are the most advanced—”

“Silence!” Meta Knight’s booming voice heightened above the two arguing crewmates, making everyone present wince. The two fell into silence, glaring daggers at one other. “Calm yourself, Captain. We are investigating a case, not patronising the enemy. Inoue—” He addressed the Wheelie. “Is what your co-worker says true?”

“Completely, Sir Meta Knight, completely.” Inoue’s engines revved thrice; her way of nodding. “It said it was a Risk Two level threat. I can promise you that, sir, if you check the logs it’ll all be there.”

“And that we shall do.” The Knight said firmly, walking up to the array of coloured buttons on the other side of the control room. "Mace Knight and Javelin Knight, you are both familiar with the operating system of the Halberd more than anyone here. Please investigate this matter.” With a ‘yes sir’, the two immediately got to work, bringing up the most recent logs of the Halberd as Cryston and Inoue cautiously watched. The Knight’s eyes faded to a grass green, signifying deep thought.

“What are you thinking, Lord Meta Knight?” Sailor Dee spoke up after being silent for a long time, his mind whizzing around many possibilities. “Do you think the scanners are faulty?”

“No.” Came the soft, concise reply. “No, I do believe the scanners are in perfect condition. Physically, I mean.”

“My Lord!” Mace Knight called out. “Sir, we’ve found something.” Everyone crowded around the two soldiers, peering over each other to get a good view of the screen as Mace Knight motioned to a line of text with a gloved hand. “Look. These logs are from thirty minutes ago. They suggest that the scanners did indeed report a Risk Two situation. However, they also suggest that they didn’t come from the scanners themselves, but from a difference source.”

“You mean, the scanners reported somethin’, but then somethin’ happened along the way and the data reached the destination differently?” Captain Vul raised his eyebrows, a little calmer now that he realised that it wasn’t his fault. The Wheelie and Sir Kibble breathed a sigh of relief; it wasn’t an issue of poor management. “It’s not a hardware problem, then?”

“No, Captain.” Javelin Knight confirmed.

“I do not doubt your claims, but what is your proof?” Meta Knight’s tone had a steely, inconceivable edge to it.

“The scanner’s IP address and its inter-domain routing digit. The Halberd possesses a static internet protocol; and the scanners themselves have a certain subnetwork digit. It appears that whatever is warping the data is sharing the IP server with the main server itself, which means this is an issue that originates directly from the server.”

“But… but that shouldn’t be possible.” Cryston’s tenor voice was merrily a whisper. “To route the data differently, you need direct access to the main server. It’s very unlikely that it was someone who doesn’t serve on the Halberd, since our encryption is so advanced that it would take approximately five quadrillion years to crack. Only someone with the encryption key – which is 256 bits, may I add – could have…” He trailed off, sounding uncertain. “Could have accessed it…”

“The only people that know the key,” There was unmistakable anger in Meta Knight’s voice now. “Are myself, the Meta-Knights, Cryston, and Inoue.”

“You mean…” Sailor Dee gasped, horrified. “That someone did this deliberately? You’re saying that someone here is a traitor and knew that we would collide with the fragments if we continued on this path?!”

“As I suspected earlier,” Meta Knight growls. His eyes contained a frightening red tint; the emotion it signified obvious from connotations. “It would appear so.”

There was a deafening silence for many, many minutes. Sailor Dee couldn’t believe it. Someone here had purposely made the scanners report a false negative. Someone here wanted Sir Meta Knight – along with his crew – dead. And they had waited for this opportunity to do that. Assassination attempts against the Knight of Dreamland were almost unheard of since many were too frightened to approach him, let alone challenge him. Though when he was captured, Meta Knight was too valuable and strong a warrior to just get rid of, so many put him to what they would call ‘good use’.

It was only a few months ago when they had finished cleaning up Dreamland after a company called Haltmann Works had invaded their planet with an aim to mechanise and ‘optimise’ organic lifeforms, manipulating existent technology to do their bidding by capturing data streams and injecting viruses into the network.

The Meta-Knights had tried to resist this onslaught, but the Battleship Halberd was immediately shot down by a singular powerful laser cannon. The crew had escaped with Meta Knight’s sacrificial attempts to delay the robotic invasion single-handedly, but instead of being slew, he was captured and ended up experiencing one of the most horrifying and traumatic events of his lifetime. Tortured to the point of near unconsciousness, mechanised without anaesthetic and forcefully mind controlled to do their bidding, he had only escaped because his student – the Hero of Dreamland know as Kirby – had broken the device connected to his cognitive system. Many feared that he wouldn’t recover mentally, but Meta Knight wasn’t known as one of the strongest warriors in the galaxy for nothing.

“Oh… oh my gosh…” Sailor Dee could only whisper. Axe Knight hissed under his breath, and Captain Vul whispered infuriated curses to himself.

Maybe the traitor didn’t agree with Meta Knight’s handling of dire situations, but Sailor Dee couldn’t imagine that to be the reason. A good six months after he had been freed, the Knight was still plagued with nightmares and visions from what he had experienced on Access Ark: the main bridge of Haltmann Works. He didn’t sleep and he barely ate or drank. The physical scars he had gained from the metal abominations that had been attached to him still stood stark against his blue skin. He’d become even more emotionally numb, only speaking when spoken to when it came to people he didn’t know. Sailor Dee knew that a good leader wasn’t just defined by how they won battles, but also how they dealt with failures, and so the crew’s already prominent reverence for their leader had increased by a fair margin, because he hadn’t allowed his debilitating experiences to get in the way of his duties as a knight and protector.

Except for someone on this ship. Sailor Dee thought bitterly, a rare bubble of anger blooming in his chest. How could they, after all Sir Meta Knight had done for them… no-one else could have handled it differently…

“W-what do we do now, commander?” Inoue whispered bravely, though her tone sincere with dismay. “If there really is a traitor, we need to find them, right?”

Meta Knight did not reply, his eyes now completely scarlet. His ability to restrain his emotions permitted him to not lash out at anyone, but it was easy to imagine the snarl that was set under his mask. When he did speak, it was a low, harsh growl. “That is not our priority at the moment as we must find a way to transmit a signal, else we will be trapped here for all eternity.” He turned away, and the crew parted as the leader made his way to the entrance of the control room. “We must explore this planet to see if there is some sort of communications device that we may use to alert Sword Knight and Blade Knight of our positions. It is our only hope of evacuation.”

The Knight paused. “Captain Vul, Trident Knight, Cryston and Inoue will work together to investigate further for any clues that point to who the traitor is.” His gaze swept over the room, now back to their usual gold. “Sailor Dee, Axe Knight, Mace Knight and Javelin Knight, you will come with me. I wish to be prepared for anything that may happen along the way, as we do not know what may lurk ahead.” The corresponding knights saluted, except for Sailor Dee, who tilted his head in confusion. Did… did I just mishear my own name…? Did he just say that he wanted me on the mission?

Trident Knight turned to the Leader. ‘May I not join you in exploration, my Lord?’  He queried. Being mute, he communicated instead with waves and motions of the hand. Sailor Dee had worked hard to study the sign language so he could understand his friend, but he was only one of the few that did.

“I require you to stay behind, as you are one of my most experienced soldiers and thus, I feel you are perfectly capable to defend the ship should anything happen.” The masked swordsman explained. “It is also time that Sailor Dee gained some more practical field experience.”

‘As you wish.’ Trident Knight bowed, seemingly satisfied with that answer.

Sailor Dee’s heart began to thump with excitement. He was actually going with Sir Meta Knight on a reconnaissance mission, and maybe he would be able to see him fight should anything attack them! Not being a proper knight yet since he was the newest addition to the Meta-Knights, his master refused to send him out to defend against any threats due to lack of experience, no matter how much he insisted he would be helpful ("It would be certain suicide", if he were to quote his words precisely). This was the first time since his training began that he was allowed to accompany him on any sort of journey. “Oh my goodness! You… you mean it? Thank you so much, Sir Meta Knight!” The Dee’s eyes sparkled enthusiastically, making Captain Vul sigh and roll his eyes from behind him. “I’ll go get my weapon! I’ll be as helpful as I can, promise!”

Meta Knight’s eyes usually didn’t reveal what he was thinking, but most of the people in the company were almost certain that they could see a glitter of humour there. “Yes. All of you fetch your weapons for an immediate departure. Sailor Dee, also go and retrieve the first-aid kit. Captain, Trident Knight, Cryston and Inoue, good luck. I trust that I can rely on you to find who has brought us into this mess.”

“Good luck to you too, sir!”

“Good luck, sir.”

Chapter Text

The first sensation that hit Sailor Dee when he walked out of the Halberd was the humidity – the air was sticky and warm with no sun present, despite the fact that the lightning was easy on the eyes. Where appearance was concerned, the sailor found himself looking at a huge, picturesque forest that was a thick combination of deciduous and evergreen trees that was similar to a location back at their home planet, that went by the name of ‘Fruity Forest’. It was rather lovely and peaceful, although if he were honest, his first thought was ‘It’s so easy to get lost here’. He dismissed it; if he followed closely behind the company, then there was no reason for him to lose his way.

Meta Knight’s gaze scanned his surroundings in a manner strangely akin to a red laser metal detector. His posture didn’t seem hostile, meaning that there was no danger present, and he grunted at a thought unvoiced to his servants before continuing on his way. Despite the suffocating heat, Sailor Dee thanked the stars above that they hadn’t been forced to land in a stormy or icy planet with unforgiving torrents.

“Sir, do you know where we look first? If we’re going to find a comms centre, should we look for a settlement?” Sailor Dee asked the Leader, who turned to him in a halfway and slowed his pace slightly.

“Indeed.” The Knight confirmed. “We are unfamiliar with these forests, so our easiest route is forward. If we stay alert, our chances of success of finding any settlements will hopefully increase.” He sighed in an annoyed manner. “The canopies are much too thick to enable me to fly above the trees to search airborne, so we must go through. It is strange.” A frown was evident in his voice. “I feel as if I recognise this planet. I do not know why…”

The small party made their way through the forest, pushing away brambles and thorns which annoyingly scratched against his furry form. Jealous of his comrades’ heavy armour which enabled them to simply walk through the bushes, the sailor had to push the plants out of the way with his weapon: a steel staff that stood much taller than he and that shared a likeness with an anchor at the tip and sharpened. It was a lethal weapon – some may describe it as heavy and awkward, but Sailor Dee found that it perfectly made up for his light weight and he had fought with it since.

‘Your weapon is not a separate tool that you simply wave around to magically achieve your wills.’ Sailor Dee recalled Meta Knight’s words when the time had come to choose his own weapon a few weeks from when he had started training. ‘It is like an extension of your limbs, and your greatest ally in battle along with a combative mind. With practice, you will learn to use it as fluently as an instinctual reflex.’

‘But how will I know which one is right for me, Sir?’ Sailor Dee had asked his mentor in confusion, looking around at the stacks of weapons that lined the training room. ‘There are so many to choose from!’

‘It is an immediate instinct that is difficult to explain. When you choose the correct weapon, your mind will immediately awaken with all you can do with it. All of the techniques I have taught you over the recent weeks will make utter sense to you when you adapt them to suit your weapon of choice.’

And so, he’d picked the very item that many had not expected: the heavy, wide-tipped spear that stood in the corner. He hadn’t actually tried that many before he found the one that he felt suited him. ‘This one, sir.’

‘Intriguing. Very intriguing,’ His mentor had said, his eyes glowing green in rumination. ‘But it perfectly suits you. I hope that you will one day learn to trust in your weapon as I have in mine.’

“—What do you think, Sailor Dee?” Mace Knight’s voice suddenly cut through his thoughts.

“W-what? Did you say something?” Sailor Dee blinked and shook his head while rubbing the back of his neck; a habit to signify his embarrassment when he received some questioning glances. “Sorry, err, could you repeat that? I was just thinking.”

“We were just wondering at whether the scanners were manipulated by injecting some code by plugging in a malicious USB into one of the sockets, or whether someone had remotely accessed the server and directly changed the code themselves.” She clarified with a smirk clear in her voice.

“Shouldn’t there be a way to check? Like, um, something that tells you if a device was plugged in or something?” Sailor Dee wouldn’t describe himself as a ‘techie’, so he felt his question was rather foolish. Having grown up in a remote island, the citizens there weren’t really accustomed to the use of technology, so he had to read up about it himself. Serving upon the Halberd had certainly increased his awareness of the topic and he’d done his best to learn how to thoroughly get used to the Halberd’s elaborate computer systems.

“There is.” She hummed to herself, turning to her robot ally as they crunched through the leaves. “We could check that, couldn’t we, Javelin?”

“I am sure that the individuals at the control room will think of that.” Javelin Knight replies in his usual subtle nuances of pitch to signify his conformity, pointedly overlooking Axe Knight’s under-of-breath mumble of ‘nerds’. “Sir Meta Knight, I wish to make you aware that my scanners are detecting massive lifeform readings. As such, I cannot accurately detect any potential signs of danger.”

“No matter.” The leader dismissed quietly after a moment’s pause but did not say anything further. Despite how he wore armoured shoes that trudged along a twig laden floor, the knight’s steps made hardly any noise against the floor. Sailor Dee noticed this and tried to copy him but ended up scratching his arm against a twig and stepping in a mouldy fruit when he didn’t concentrate on his surroundings. With a disgusted ‘eww!’, he continued trudging on, his eyes darting to-and-fro for anything that may be of interest.

Sooner or later, he began to hum a little tune from a lullaby that he’d been taught long ago. Mainly, it was to distract him from the suffocating heat that was really starting to get to him now. Waddle Dees weren’t known to have a good tolerance of high levels of heat or cold, and he was tempted to take his hat off or something and tried to distract himself from the different types of exotic fruit that he could see hanging from the deciduous trees… sparkling Gem Apples, normal green apples, and some other fruits that he didn’t recognise—

“Sir…” Axe Knight suddenly spoke up in a tone laden with a warning. “It’s not a settlement or something, but, um, I think you should see this…”

Sailor Dee looked to see what he was pointing at, and felt a prickle run down his spine, his short fur standing on end. Mediumly obscured by some trees, a semi-large clearing could be seen, but that was a very passive way to put it. Trees lay snapped in half, deep scratches lined the remaining bark, and some purple stains were seen smeared irregularly throughout the violent-looking scene. It seemed some sort of brawl had occurred here between two fearsome predators. There were no bodies, so maybe – The sailor shivered at this thought – the victor had dragged the dead body away to finish it off…

“This forest is not safe.” Meta Knight was on full alert mode, his golden eyes bright and attentive. “The stillness means that whatever caused this is not far behind.”

Sailor Dee’s eyes widened. He hadn’t realised this before, but there wasn’t any chirping of Birdons or anything of the sort, no gentle breeze that caused the ruffling of leaves. It was completely, utterly, entirely silent. That realisation made the peace he felt earlier at being in a fresh aired forest completely dissipate, replaced with mouth-drying anxiety. He knew that Meta Knight’s skills would mean that they were relatively safe, although despite this reassurance it made him cling to his weapon tighter.

“This can’t be caused by some wild native animal!” Mace Knight whispered, hefting her huge flail. “It has to be a demon-beast of some sort.”

“Searching my database, I can confirm Mace Knight’s statement. This sort of destruction – and this scale – may be caused by Forest Wolfwrath, a Centifear, or a Heavy Anaconda with chance of 91.259%.” Javelin Knight’s ominous words made Sailor Dee inhale a sharp breath. Even reciting the fear-inducing names of some of the most dreaded species of demon-beast made him nervous.

“We have no choice but to continue on our path.” Meta Knight nods to the two knights that had spoken and brushed past the trees as he continued on his way. “Sailor Dee, stay close by.” 

“G-Gladly, my Lord.” The Dee swallowed and took his place beside him, suddenly feeling much safer. Because in contrast to him, the sailor had no real experience in fighting monsters.

Cryston was typing speedily when he felt Trident Knight tap him on the shoulder. He had been so engrossed in his work that he’d forgotten that his surroundings existed – pressing keys on a keyboard, moving the mouse around, tapping on touchscreens – and as a result he was rudely yanked back to reality in the form of a violent jump. “Sir!”

Trident Knight gave a beckoning gesture in a clear indication for the Sir Kibble to follow him and pointed urgently to something on his own screen. Calling Inoue also, Cryston squinted his eyes at what the Meta-Knight was referring to.

Just in case the traitor had deleted any files, they had decided to do a quick memory restore from a backup point that had been created three hours ago of the essential data files on the system. What Trident Knight was referring to at the moment was a text file, which he had opened and moved the file window to the side of the screen. At the top of the large glass screen was a photograph of a planet he certainly recognised – an amalgam of light and dark greens.

Inoue gasped in the way she did when she had realised something horrific. Trident Knight nodded vigorously to her – as if approving her reaction – and pointed to the coordinates that captioned the image and pointed to the floor under his feet. The message was clear – this was definitely the planet that they were currently on. “The traitor deleted the planet’s file from the database…? But why…” She trailed off when she had read the description underneath the coordinates. If she had hands, she would have clapped them over her mouth.

The more she read about the planet, the more that she was convinced the traitor had purposely made sure that they had encountered the astral junkyard. If Meta Knight and the crew hadn’t perished in space, he would certainly have an incredibly difficult time surviving here.

There were no hushed mutterings among the crew as they continued on their path this time. Everyone was on edge, their weapons hovering towards any snapping or movement of twigs that may indicate some hostile creature. “There shouldn’t be any demon-beasts anymore, should there?”

“A demon-beast’s lifeforce is not directly linked to its creator.” The masked warrior replies dryly. “Some planets are uninhabitable due the slaughter of its citizens by the hand of the monsters, despite the eradication of Nightmare. Popstar is not one of those planets; me and Kirby have made sure of that. If I had known that there were planets in the Gamble Galaxy such close by to Popstar which still—”

Meta Knight reacted so fast that Sailor Dee barely saw him.

It was only a second later when he stood over a centipede-like creature that he’d sliced in half. If it were standing at its full length, the waddle dee imagined that it would have been three times taller than he. “A small Centifear.” The warrior growled. “They always travel in packs, so there will be more coming. I was able to sense it because of my abilities, but they are very sneaky.”

The aide looked over to see a sliver of gold that had caught his eye. Meta Knight had unsheathed his weapon – a beautiful golden sword with two pairs of prongs on the sides and a ruby embedded in the hilt. Known as ‘Galaxia’, this incredibly powerful sword was rumoured to be of sacred origins and only the most mighty and honourable warriors were worthy of wielding it. No-one doubted that Meta Knight was one of those people, as his firm ideals that resided in the purity of combat and his chivalrous nature were well-known to his allies and adversaries alike.

Sailor Dee thanked Nova above that Meta Knight had the ability to sense any dangerous demon-beasts or beings that were made of Dark Matter at a distance – sort of like a sixth sense – otherwise they’d all be dead right now. This time, the demon-beasts were not so subtle, as he could hear a clicking of mandibles that were slowly rushing towards them. “These demon-beasts are poisonous and shoot lightning from their mouths. Their weakness is in their eyes.” Meta Knight informed. “Aim for them and they will be much easier to destroy.”

“Get ready…” Axe Knight spoke lowly from behind him, brandishing his battle-axe. Sailor Dee clung onto his weapon in fear, backing near his mentor. Adrenaline thumped through his veins as the sounds got closer and closer…

The demon-beasts crashed through the trees. There was a total of six. His body shook in terror and his breathing quickened – they were massive¸ some half as tall as the trees themselves! Huge fangs glinted from their mouths, malicious poison-yellow eyes flashed, and red mandibles clicked menacingly. ‘Stay brave, stay brave…’

Meta Knight immediately sprang into action. His purple cape fluidly transformed into huge, muscular demon-like wings and with a single flap, he lifted into the air, his sword flashing as he took on two of the larger monsters. He fluently dodged a beam of electricity from one of the Centifears, energy forming in his sword and he released it in a bright flash of gold. It slammed into the monster’s hide, and it screeched in pain. The creatures were fast, but Meta Knight’s aerial speed was unmatched. It wasn’t long before a few swings of the sword rendered one of the monsters incapable of sight and thus, it was immediately cut down. There was no hesitation or celebration as Meta Knight turned to deal with the second with practiced ease.

It was no mystery how he was universally known by his adversaries as the Knightmare.

Sailor Dee sprinted towards Axe and Mace Knight to help them. They were struggling with one of the Centifears, attempting to drive their weapons past their tough outer body and inside the monsters, but they simply bounced off their tough armoured hide. Its fangs clicking, the monster dove to reach for the closest Meta-Knight, but with a burst of protectiveness, Sailor Dee thrusted his weapon into the soft underbelly of the monster before Mace Knight immediately slammed her flail into its head and Javelin Knight threw his javelin at its eye. Distracted for a second from its pain, it didn’t have time to get up when Axe Knight thudded his axe through its head. The monster squirmed to a standstill.  

“Thanks.” Mace Knight breathed to Sailor Dee. He nodded at her, too frightened to trust himself to speak and surprised at his own daring, but they could barely react when two of the Centifears leapt at them in fury at the death of one of their pack-mates. Sailor Dee realised with dismay that three of them were nowhere near enough to take on two of the monsters, but they had Meta Knight on their side – speaking of Meta Knight, where was he—

Sailor Dee yelled in agony as pain suddenly shot through his side. One of the demon-beasts had managed to scratch him on the side with a claw and he was flung into a nearby tree. Tears of pain forming at his eyes, his hazy vision could barely see Axe Knight run up to his side and kneel down. “Sailor…”

“I’m… I’m good…” Well, in all honesty, he felt like screaming in agony, but he was able to hold back his sobs – thankfully, the injury wasn’t deep, so he wasn’t bleeding at an alarming pace. He managed to stand up, ignoring the massive scratch that now dressed his skin and the sight of his own blood. Javelin Knight and Mace Knight, both looking absolutely battered, stepped in front of them, and the two monsters reared back and simultaneously formed electricity in their mouths. They were cornered. This was the end… but he would fight, and make his mentor proud…

Before the beasts could fire, something raced in front of the soldiers, eyes flaming red and speedily throwing his weapon at one of the Centifear’s eyes. Snarling, Meta Knight flew up and yanked it out, but the other demon-beast seemed to ignore the new threat that had injured its comrade and instead slithered to the downed Sailor Dee, horrible fanged mouth wide open to devour its prey.

At the last second, Meta Knight appeared in front of him, driving Galaxia inside the Centifear’s maw with a roar. It stood no chance against his fury, its awful eyes widening as the swordsman dug his weapon deeper. It writhed around for what seemed like ages, before it stilled.

Meta Knight pulled his sword out of the dead monster’s mouth, eyeing the corpse with disgust. He turned to the sailor, who was clutching his wound that made his fur cake with blood, but his eyes were wide with wonder. “Y-You saved my life, s-sir…” He looked up at his mentor. “I-I thought I was dead, then you just appeared out of nowhere…”

“You are very welcome, but there is no need for a narrative.” Meta Knight’s deep voice was heavily sarcastic as he wiped Galaxia against a particularly large leaf, making Sailor Dee laugh weakly despite the circumstances. “Axe, Mace, Javelin… have any of you sustained serious injuries?”

Mace and Axe Knight were breathing hoarsely, trying to find their speech. “J-just a few scratches, sir, nothing too major.”

The Knight reached into his cape and retrieved a first-aid kit. The cape, actually an ancient relic, was known as the Dimensional Cape and it granted him the ability to fit small objects there with the power of dimensional manipulation. The swordsman’s magic ability rendered him capable to manipulate the Dimensional Cape’s magic to hide his wings when they were dormant.

Meta Knight requested that Javelin Knight assist him as he handed out some antibacterial dressing and bandages (being a robot, Javelin had gained serious dents and scratches instead of injuries) and left each member to treat their own wounds. Sailor Dee was in the midst of dabbing antiseptic onto his scratch when he caught a glimpse of something white sticking out of the back of Meta Knight’s arm.

It was a fang; thin, deadly and gleaming in the forest light.

“My Lord!” The waddle dee gasped in horror, pointing. It must have gotten lodged there when he had driven his sword into the creature’s mouth. Meta Knight had said that those demon-beasts were poisonous… “Lord Meta Knight! Sir, you’re hurt…!”

Meta Knight gave an animalistic growl when he looked over and saw what was deeply embedded into him. With a complete disregard for how painful his next action would be, he grabbed the tooth and brutally wrenched it out of his own body with only a grunt; it made Sailor Dee recoil. His fist tightened on his sword in anger as he threw the fang to the side, and the sailor imagined the knight grind his teeth behind his mask. “Not as careful as I once was, it seems. Let us continue on our path, we do not have much time until we run across other demon-beasts.”

The Meta-Knights and Sailor Dee stared at him in disbelief. “Sir, the poison!” Axe Knight exclaimed. “We have to get back to the Halberd and get some antidote or you’ll die!”

“A Centifear’s poison varies between beings, but the approximate length of time that the toxins completely overpowers an adult’s immune system is four hours. I suggest you seek immediate help, Sir Meta Knight.” Despite his robotic tone, the warning rang loud and clear in Javelin’s voice.

“You think I do not know that?” Meta Knight snapped, tying a bandage tightly around his injured arm. “We cannot turn back now. We are too deep into the forest, and it is probable that some demon-beasts have already caught our scent and our trailing our path. If we turn back, then we will have a greater chance of encountering them.”

“But, sir—”

“That is an order, Sailor Dee.” He cut him off along with any arguments that he wanted to raise, his eyes flashing. He waded through the cracked twigs and snapped trees, cutting some away with Galaxia. “Hurry, patch your wounds and come along.”

As cold as usual.

They were led through reems and reems of trees. The more time he spent in this forest, the more anxious Sailor Dee became. Every brush of wind was a demon-beast ready to pounce, every orange and green fruit were sickly eyes observing the group hungrily. He could hear yowls in the distance. This was like an automatic graveyard for anyone who visited and hopes of finding some sort of settlement dwindled with each passing metre that they crossed by foot. They waded through water, stopped for a drink, patched up their wounds again, and tried to catch up with Meta Knight’s very inconsiderate pace. They were all battered from their battle with the Centifears and all wished for a good nap. The only reason none complained because they knew every second that they spent out in the open, the more likely they were to be ambushed again.

Sailor Dee focused on his master walking in front of him to try and keep his pace, on that dirty purple-blue cape and strong stance. Thankfully, the Knight had slowed his pace slightly over the past few hours – maybe the ferocity of the battle had caught up with him too and he was tired like any normal person would be, or maybe he felt some compassion for his worn-out students. This made the aide scoff internally. He knew first-hand that Meta Knight would take crashing down on this planet and fighting the Centifears as some sort of ‘training exercise’. And the swordsman wasn’t known to be… compassionate in training. Many considered his methods; no matter how effective; as brutal, even abusive sometimes. But the only reason that Sailor Dee had gained that burst of courage during the fight was because of how applicable his methods were in training you up for the real world. When he wanted to see your progress, he himself would assess you. You never finished a training session without bruises and aches all over your body…

Then, with absolutely no warning, Meta Knight stumbled and fell.

Immediately, the sailor and the rest of the soldiers were at his side. “Sir! Sir, are you—”

“I am fine.” He gave them a glare behind his mask that could freeze boiling water, but his voice was a slight rasp, causing the reality of Meta Knight’s condition to slam down on him like a fifty-tonne hammer. Unsheathing Galaxia, the knight dug it in the ground and attempted to prop himself up. Shaking, he managed to stand up on two feet, but his posture was small and hunched from the way that his pauldrons pointed down and how his cape hung limply off his spherical body.

They had no choice but to continue. The swordsman limped with every step without stumbling, but his gaze was firmly fixed onto the scenes in front of him like nothing was happening.

“Sir. My scanners are now able to detect biotic heterotrophs due to the reduced density of trees. There is another pack of Centifears that are around seven klicks away. I can conclude that they are heading towards us.” Javelin Knight paused before continuing. “Due to your current condition, Lord Meta Knight, it would be unwise to engage them. I also faintly detect non-behemothic lifeforms in our current course, which may indicate a settlement of citizens.”

Everyone gave groans of both anxiety and relief, along with a few unanimous sighs of ‘finally’. This could end either way, and if they were lucky, the inhabitants may have a treatment for the toxins that infected their leader’s body. “How far?” Mace Knight probed, glancing worryingly at her superior whose steps were getting slower and slower by the minute.

“4.87 kilometres away.”

“That’s not that far to walk, right?” Axe Knight lifted his skull-like mask and took a gulp from the water bottle that he clenched in his hand, shuddering at how warm it had become from being exposed to the forest’s humidity. “Don’t worry, sir! Sure, we’re battered and so freakin’ tired, but if the demon-beasts attack then we’ll do as much as we can to keep the monsters away. You can count on us!” The squat black knight reassured the Leader, and Mace Knight nodded eagerly.

“Definitely! I agree one hundred percent!” Sailor Dee echoed enthusiastically, but faltered when he glanced at his leader’s face – his eyes had dimmed slightly, no longer the hard glow that it normally was.

“Thank you.” The masked swordsman’s normally strong bass was now merrily a whisper. He was offered some water by Sailor Dee, and he lifted his mask to take a sip of it. When he moved to put it back inside his cape, the waddle dee noticed with dismay that his gloved hands were shaking so badly it was a miracle he didn’t spill any onto the floor. “Your loyalty is… truly appreciated. If I do not—”

“Sir Meta Knight.” It pained the sailor every time his lord talked in his pessimistic manner, and it made tears rise to his eyes. He knew it was rude to cut him off, but all Meta Knight was doing right now was using his energy to voice how he felt that he was going to die. That didn’t help anyone, including himself. “D-Don’t talk like that. Please. You are going to make it. We are going to find some antidote. We are going to arrive at the settlement.”

“I wish I withheld your optimism…” Meta Knight was interrupted by a series of rough, violent coughs that racked his entire body, making everyone stare at him in alarm. He cursed colourfully under his breath in a foreign language. “…but that does not come naturally to me. Run, and do not worry about me.”

“W-what—”

When he strained his ears, he heard it: the ominous clicking of mandibles, rush of legs against leaves, the snapping of twigs, the evil hisses. There were certainly more than six, and that realisation lead to another that there was no chance they would be able to face them. “We can’t face these. Run!” Mace Knight shouted, vocalizing everyone’s thoughts.

Run, run, run, run, run… His head pounded in fear as he raced across the forest floor as fast as his little legs could carry him, along with the other Meta-Knights. However, he was nowhere near as fast as the others, and so ended up lagging behind. The Leader stumbled again, but Sailor Dee caught him, wrapping his arm around his shoulder to steady him with the help of Mace Knight.

“I am merrily a hindrance to you all now…” Meta Knight rasped. “Save yourselves. I do not wish for you to sacrifice yourself on my behalf.”

“That’s our choice, not yours.” Mace Knight snapped, her tone containing a sharpness usually alien to her usual softness. “C’mon.”

“There!” He heard Axe Knight shout, seeing a rather squat leafy mound that was built on the floor of the forest. But that was when the monsters burst through the trees, and everyone’s suspicions were correct… there must have been nine or ten of the demon-beasts that were devouring the distance between him and the swordsman. Meta Knight hissed at Mace Knight to run in front of them as she was much faster than them both. Sailor Dee screamed in a very undignified way, despite inwardly accepting that maybe he or Sir Meta Knight would not make it to the mound that everyone was crowding inside…

Suddenly, he was swept off his feet, but it wasn’t any of the Centifears that had lifted him. Sir Meta Knight was using every last gram of his remaining energy to fly him to safety. His mighty draconian wings beat against the steamy atmosphere; low, determined growls emitting from his mouth as his wilful resolve to save every last member of his crew overpowered his failing body. The Knight retracted his wings, his sword Galaxia deflecting a sudden beam of electricity that fizzed towards them, and with a final flap, his wings wrapped them both in a sort of protective shell as they tumbled inside the knoll. His right wing taking most of the impact, he skidded across the floor, coming to a stop at the other side of the damp area.

As soon as they’d flown in, Axe Knight and Mace Knight collectively slammed the door closed, and everyone cringed as a slam against the door shook the entire mound, dust falling from the air, but the door held strong. Infuriated hisses screeched at the outside, and the seconds were agonising as the party waited for the demon-beast to give up and retract. Grunting, Sailor Dee stood up from under Meta Knight’s wing, lifting it off of him. He winced as he felt something tender on the side of his head – a bruise had formed on the side of his head from the impact, but he ignored it for now.

“There’s a trapdoor on the floor. If there were any people living— Oh, no… Lord Meta Knight…” Axe Knight raced and knelt down in front of her lord, touching his arm. “He’s… he’s burning.”

The swordsman was not moving, his dulled wings draped limply over his body and his eyes half-lidded and alarmingly dim. The poison had now spread completely throughout his frame. With those wings tattered and his sword glimmering, he looked so frail yet so powerful that it terrified everyone, in a different way than the Centifears did. If Meta Knight died now… it would be like the universe would mourn him, a Red Giant star exploding in a supernova. He’d gone through so much and this was where he died? On this stupid Nova-forsaken off-world planet?

“Sir? Can you sit up at all?” Mace’s tone was thick with distress, wiping sweat from her brow. The same question was clearly ringing in her head like everyone else’s. Would he survive?

Meta Knight turned to look at her, tilting his body slightly as if contemplating her statement. “I cannot.”

“T-There’s still antibiotics in the first-aid kit if you still want them.” Sailor Dee whispered, tears in his voice.

“They will not be of any use now.” Javelin pointed out, and everyone glowered at him. 

“Javelin Knight… is correct.” Coughs racked his body again, his once deep voice now as rough as sandpaper against wood. “And stop… speaking in that tone. I… am not dead yet.”

“Hello?” A muffled female voice sounded from under the floor. The Meta-Knights clutched their weapons tightly as someone suddenly lifted the trapdoor from the floor. Sailor Dee blinked as light flooded the little mound and someone stepped up. A small, round, light green being’s eyes widened when she caught sight of the ragtag group of armoured warriors. She had a green bandanna wrapped around her head and her face was lined with black markings. Her round form was certainly similar to a certain someone, and that thought was consistent in all of the Meta-Knights as they looked at each other in surprise. “Uh…”

“Don’t worry, despite our… daunting appearance… we’re not your enemy.” Axe Knight said reassuringly, making her sigh in relief at his passive tone. “We just need your help, all of us. We crash-landed on this planet and got attacked by demon-beasts when we tried to find a village of some sort.”

“Please.” Sailor Dee ran up to her, his tone begging. “P-please help us. Our master’s been poisoned by a Centifear.” He motioned towards Meta Knight’s still body. “I-if you can help heal him, we’ll do anything to repay you.” He placed a hand at his heart and bowed. “We promise on our honour.”

She stared at him, looking slightly flustered at this show of courtesy. The Meta-Knights stepped aside when the new arrival began to advance towards him. However, she gasped when she caught sight of his wings that lay limp across his body, and it made her hesitate warily. “He has wings like a demon! Is he not a demon-beast of some sort?”

Axe Knight scowled at her, but his tone softened when he remembered that many people made that mistake when they first saw Meta Knight’s wings. “Do you really think we’d be following just some random demon-beast? He saved our lives.”

A harsh breath sounded in Meta Knight’s direction. “I assure you, my lady…” The Knight rasped from his slumped position, his eyes very faintly glimmering in the dimness. Her gaze snapped towards him at the sound of his voice, shocked. “I am not some… demon-beast.”

“The only reason His Lordship is poisoned was because he took the blow for me when Centifears attacked.” Sailor Dee specifically did not reveal his identity until they agreed and decided to heal him, should this female be an enemy in disguise (even though he severely doubted it). Meta Knight had many enemies in the galaxy, and it was important to be cautious. “He managed to slay almost an entire pack of them, but I was in trouble and… h-he saved my life but got bitten in the process… and when the second pack attacked, he flew me to safety despite being severely infected with the poison.” He sniffed, his tears now fully running down his face. “Please save him…”

The female was slightly shaken at Sailor Dee’s pleading tone. Her eyes shut for a few seconds. “He slayed a Centifear?” Her mouth gaped, looking at the fallen warrior in awe. “I apologise for my suspicion, but we don’t get many visitors for obvious reasons. We are a simple and peaceful people that live in hiding on this hostile place and due to this, we have many antidotes at our disposal.” She approached the masked knight and placed a gentle hand on his side. He did not stir or open his eyes, but the very gentle rise and fall of his round physique meant that he was in a state of hibernation. “Of course I’ll heal him. How long ago was he infected? From the signs, I’d say early three hours.”

“Actually…” Mace Knight looked to the side; her voice was filled with stunned realisation. “It’s been five.”

“How can that be?” The small female whispered. “Perhaps the poison is not as effective on his species, and I have never seen anyone of his kind… but a Centifear’s poison does not discriminate. How old is he?”

Everyone looked at each other. “Um… He’s not… young. Let’s put it that way.” Axe Knight forwarded.

“Will he live?” Mace Knight pressed.

“I don’t know.” There were still remnants of shock in her voice. “If what you say is true and he has far exceeded the time when he should have died, then I’ve never seen such strength. His life is in his own hands now, and the only thing that we can do is wait and pray to Nova that he’ll make the right choice. Meanwhile…” She smiled kindly at the group. “You all look exhausted. I’ll patch you all up and you can stay for food.”

Chapter Text

The Meta-Knights were introduced to the underground village as the puffball-like female – who went by the name of Sato – got to work with healing Meta Knight under the close scrutiny of his soldiers, who took turns guarding him in shifts (apart from Javelin Knight, who was being repaired due to the damage his outer hull and one of his floating domes that were attached to his underside had received). Sato was, very conveniently, the healer of the underground village who had just about to go off to sleep when she had heard voices coming from the entrance of her habitat. She lived with her younger brother Ando – who worked as a builder for the village. Despite the laborious work it entailed, Ando was barely a teenager and he was very shy – which made many of the soldiers wonder how he got the job, despite the fact that he enjoyed physical work according to Sato.

Possibly the most intriguing aspect of the two young beings was that they were Batamon. According to Javelin Knight, they were a very rare species due to their very limited abilities and generally peaceful ways, so most of them died off during the Great War against Nightmare and the Dark Matter attacks. Especially in a hostile planet such as this, it was a miracle that those two had managed to survive. Sailor Dee had asked them why they stayed on the planet, to which he’d received a solemn reply of ‘We have nowhere else to go.’

The closest to the other members of the village that they were was around a kilometre away. The only other people that lived near them was a snarky female Birdon named Fulica with blue and red plumage that acted as a messenger. Sato was supposed to report to the village if they ever admitted any visitors, but for urgency’s sake she decided to keep it quiet for now. Axe Knight had told her that Meta Knight had many enemies, and it would certainly be the best course of action to hide his presence from everyone else.

It was Sailor Dee’s turn to guard, and it gave him a lot of time to pause and just reflect on what he had experienced today as he stood there with his anchor-pronged weapon. He was caught up in his thoughts as he watched Sato attempt with difficulty to give Meta Knight some medicine without removing his mask – since the soldiers had informed her explicitly that he would appreciate it if his face were not revealed. A night had passed since they had encountered the Batamon healer, and according to her, Meta Knight was making ‘extraordinary progress’. Usually, it took adults twelve to fourteen hours for the poison to clear enough from their body so that the patient would be considered ‘stable’, as treatment wasn’t complex, but the swordsman’s light snoring that came from the bed meant that he was now sleeping, and he would awaken soon. Sailor Dee, being Meta Knight’s personal aide, knew that the warrior had an amazing recovery system and was a very fast healer.

The faithful Waddle Dee couldn’t help but wonder what would have happened if Meta Knight had really died, how a traitor that disagreed with some of his ideals was able to cause the destruction of one of the most legendary warriors to ever exist. He couldn’t even begin to imagine what his crew would do without him, what Kirby would do without him, what Popstar would do without him.

How now may have been the year; in the fifty thousand or so years that he had existed; that the Lone Swordsman perished. It was unthinkable. The words Meta Knight and dead just didn’t go together.

Sato was now gently cleaning his slowly healing wings with a wet cloth. She still seemed wary of them, but the Meta-Knights had only been kind to her so that made her relax a little. She’d probably used the reasoning that if the servants were friendly, then so was the master despite his frightening appendages.

“Hey, Sato? Could we ask you another favour?” Sailor Dee questioned nervously, watching her. “Erm, you know how we told you that we crash-landed on our ship? Well, our communications medium and scanners got destroyed too, and I was asking… do you have something which we can use to contact different planets?”

She looked at him for a second and shook her head, turning around after finishing what she was doing and binning the cloth. “We don’t really use technology here, but we may have the materials to fix your battleship. This planet is rich with ores, metals and minerals and some are very good electricity conductors.” She looked down in shame as a heavy look of disappointment took over Sailor Dee’s expression. “I’m sorry we cannot provide you with what you want.”

The Waddle Dee’s eyes met hers in disbelief. “Why… why are you apologising? You’ve been so kind to all of us!” He beamed, his tone finally returning to the optimistic bounce that it usually was. “It’s alright, we have a large team back there that can fix it with those materials, no need to worry. Thank you so much for helping us, you are like the nicest person that we’ve ever met! We’ll repay you with whatever you want!”

“Indeed.” A familiar deep voice sounded behind their backs. “It is much appreciated.”

He’s awake.

Sailor Dee gasped and spun around, to see the once-injured warrior now standing on the bed, his demonic wings neatly folded behind him. His eyes were back to their hard, yellow glow: a little dimmer which revealed his true exhaustion, but his posture was no longer small and hunched. From the perspective of people who didn’t know him well, he looked to be back to his usual proud state. How Meta Knight was able to recover so quickly was a mystery, but then again, everything about him was a mystery.

“Lord Meta Knight! You’re awake!” Tears of happiness pricked his eyes as what happened too often, immediately kneeling as the knight descended on the floor with a mighty flap of his wings after he had stretched them to their full length. “I thought you were going to die; you were so close—”

“You did?” The Knight questioned in what could have been a humoured tone at the sailor’s omnipresent enthusiasm, nodding for him to rise. Sailor Dee didn’t know what to respond to that, so he projected his relief through his glimmering and impossibly expressive eyes when he stood up.

“Wait… w-wait…”  Sato’s chocolate-brown eyes were sparked with a strange amalgam of fear and wonder, and the two soldiers turned to look at her. She backed away from the now healed knight, gawking at him through new eyes now she was aware of his identity. “Lord Meta Knight?! As in ‘The Lone Swordsman’?! Oh my Nova…” Her mouth was agape, her eyes slightly downcast in respect. “Sir… It’s an honour…”

If Sailor Dee had the physical capabilities to do so, he would have crossed his arms proudly as if to say, ‘I know, right?!’. So, these people were familiar with who he was and his title? That was interesting – it meant that Meta Knight had visited the planet before. The Knightmare’s wings transformed back into his cape, and he wrapped it around himself in his typical fashion. “I am he.” His voice had, once again, reverted to its impassive, calm tone, brimming with both cold and warm. “Lady Sato. You have taken in my knights to your abode and cared for them, without any incentive. I was injured and dying, and your infallible kindness and care allowed me to heal to a suitable state of health.” He clutched his cape in one hand and bowed deeply, shutting his eyes as he did so in a gentlemanly show of thankfulness. “My sincerest gratitude goes to you. I owe you my life.”

Sato’s face turned bright red in sheer embarrassment at his remarks and his actions. “It’s… it’s just what I do, sir. You don’t have to call me ‘Lady’. I’m just a healer, not someone of royalty.” She chuckled nervously. “Besides, Sailor Dee told me how you saved your soldiers’ lives and that the only reason you were poisoned was because of it. I’ve heard the tales and I know that it takes famed Knightmare much more than a pack of Centifears to bring him down.”

“You. Have no idea.” Sailor Dee grinned. “So, how do you know who Lord Meta Knight is, anyway?”

“Precisely something I wished to query.” The Knight spoke as usual in his elegant manner of speech. For some reason, his tone hinted at slight suspicion. “I can see that you are Batamon, which is a species that was almost driven onto extinction in the various eldritch assaults that occurred on planets such as this. I felt as though I recognised this earth as soon as we crashed, despite it not appearing on my battleship’s planetary database.”

“Well, I haven’t seen you personally beforehand…” Sato turned to the warrior, whose gaze was sparking with slight intrigue. She went a little red before continuing. “But, erm, at one point like you said, this place was completely overrun by demon-beasts and my people were forced into hiding – we’re peaceful people and not fighters at all. I wasn’t alive at Nightmare’s time, so I don’t really know what happened, but I was a young girl when Dark Matter attacked.” She smiled sadly at Meta Knight. “I know you because my people spoke of a winged knight, titled ‘The Lone Swordsman’. Apparently, you drove all the monsters away and saved the Batamon species from extinction… or something like that.” She tried to hide it, but the dejection was clear on her features. “Don’t you remember?”

Meta Knight’s eyes turned green as he reflected over her explanation. “Hmm. It explains why my memory tells me that I have indeed encountered this planet in my lifetime. But I have been to many missions and fought many battles. Furthermore…” His eyes glimmered with something strange. “My mind has been… greatly troubled as of late, thus my recollection of past events jumbled.”

“Troubled?” Sato repeated quietly, a new kind of fear clouding her gaze. “What could possibly trouble you?”

She took a step back when Meta Knight’s eyes brightened, that smouldering yellow glare drilling like lasers into her. He broke eye contact after a few tense seconds, and with a flurry of his cape he strode to the simple wooden door on the other side of the room. “A knight; honourable as he may be; is not without his faults, young Sato.” He opened the door, looking at the pair through the corner of his eye. “Nor is he invulnerable despite how hard he trains.”

And giving them both a beckoning glance, he left without another word.

“Lord Meta Knight!” Came the unified cries of happiness from the soldiers as they all stood up, as they had been sitting down to discuss the recent events. Every single one of them had been worried sick for their leader, so it was a relief to see him upright and seemingly well and body cleared of the toxins that threatened to kill him. It was Mace Knight who spoke the next sentence, her voice filled with gladness and relief, as was everyone else’s exclamation: “We’re so happy to see you! Alive!”

“You recovered so quickly!” Axe Knight exclaims in a hushed tone, saluting his leader. Sailor Dee smiled to himself when the commander bowed and didn’t say anything at his statement: instead, the optical tint in his eyes deviated from blazing yellow to a soft light blue at everyone’s reactions, if only for a second. Despite how much he tried to conceal the fact, Sailor Dee knew how much his leader appreciated the loyalty and appreciative gestures of his crew despite how he always worked to preserve his ‘cold and stoic’ façade. From people who knew him best, though, they knew that the knight was anything but emotionless. In fact, it was the fear of revealing his emotions that made him conceal himself from the world, and that was a fact that very few people knew.

“Master Meta Knight. It is relieving to see you in good health.” Javelin Knight gave a bow, the other knights following suit. “Thank you, Miss Sato, for healing our lord.”

“That’s no problem, really.” She blushed. “Um, Sailor Dee also said that you need some materials to fix the scanners on your battleship. I can ask Ando to provide those, but we’ll need your help along Fulica’s (if she agrees to assist) to transport them to wherever your ship is. She can carry pretty heavy loads, but she’ll tire out if she does it herself. GUYS?” She yelled at the top of her voice, so very unexpectedly loud that everyone – besides Javelin and Meta Knight – flinched. “Could you come here a sec?”

“That is not a concern.” Meta Knight tugged at his own cape when he was sure she wouldn’t yell further, referring to his hidden wings. “I, too, am capable of lifting materials of a substantial weight, and will do so even if Fulica does not agree to help us.” He faced the Batamon directly, ignoring his soldiers’ cries of outrage at the fact that he needed to rest as he recovered from the poison. “What sort of payment do you take for these materials?”

Sato smiled timidly at him. “Meta Knight… sir… why are you so insistent on paying me? It’s just a kind gesture of mine. You’ll never visit this planet again, and it’s an honour for you to even regard me. Besides, all that you did for my people back then, the fact that you saved us from extinction… we never repaid you for what you did, did we? So consider this to be my payment, because if it weren’t for your actions, I wouldn’t be alive.” She ignored the whispers of puzzlement she could here from the Meta-Knights as they looked between the pair, trying to figure out what Sato was referring to. She released a soft, sad laugh, rubbing the back of her neck. “In a way, you know?”

The Knight blinked – something he rarely did – and didn’t say a word for almost a minute. Then, he gently dipped his head. “Then we are even. I saved your life, and you mine.” His voice was strangely mild. “Yet, you still require payment for the materials. That is unrelated to our life debts, therefore I shall provide. I am informed at the fact that Centifears prowl only a certain area and do not deviate from approximately a two-mile radius, so I am assuming that the pack of ten Centifears have been terrorizing your village for a long while?” He smirked behind his mask at Sato’s shocked expression, as she already suspected what he was suggesting. “When my health is at its optimum and my ship is repaired, then I shall personally eliminate those threats along with all others on this planet. I will also send for my other students that currently reside back on my home planet to assist me.”

“You… you don’t have—”

“It is my duty as a Star Warrior, and as well as a knight, to eliminate any servants of Nightmare or Dark Matter that still endure.” His eyes flash brightly, and he points a finger at her to tell her that this argument was over, yet his deep bass was still soft and not at all hostile. “This is my decision. Do not fear for my safety.”  

“Sir…” Javelin began, sounding very disapproving. “May I question your decision to be out of bed so soon after recovery?”

“No, you may not question my decision.” Meta Knight’s voice was stern, yet light-hearted in a manner that indicated he found the question rather amusing, but that it was not up for debate. “I will be fine; I am not some fragile flower to be handled delicately.”

Mace and Axe Knight snorted with laughter at this, especially at the fact that anyone knew that Meta Knight was anything but delicate. Sailor Dee began to giggle, trying to smother his laughs. The Leader’s looked at them in confusion, silently asking what in Nova’s name was so funny, to which Mace replied: “It’s just good to have you back, sir.”

“Ay, Sato?” A strongly accented female voice shouted above all of the laughs that were currently echoing around the small room. Everyone filtered into silence when they turned around to see who was currently standing at the door – a Birdon with blue and red plumage, and a small cyan Batamon with a thin scar down his left side, large green eyes, and also sported a bandanna and white markings which splashed across his cheeks that matched Sato’s. He cringed behind the birdlike creature, looking up at the strangers with wariness. “Wadd’ya want?”

“Hey, Fulica. Ando. They need your help. They need to repair their battleship so they need some materials to do so – could you guys help with getting and transporting them?”

“What? Why’re we helpin’ ‘em?” Fulica squawked in disapproval, although Ando nodded once to say that he agreed to help the warriors. “Ya barely even know ‘em! And aren’t you healin’ their leader right now? How do ya know you can trust ‘em?”

“I trust them.” Sato grinned at her, excitement lighting up her eyes and motioning to the masked knight that stood, poised and still. “This isn’t just some random stranger; this is Sir Meta Knight! And these are some of his soldiers that serve him on his warship! If they want our help, then I’ll be more than willing and I’m sure the rest of the village will. Plus, they said they’ll help you to carry and transport the stuff!”

And so, Sailor Dee assisted in hauling the materials that Ando provided in the back of the village. Yes, the family lived in the outskirts, but since Ando was one of the builders of the village, then the materials that the villagers mine were very near their settlement. That was a relief as it meant that they didn’t have to inform the village of their presence. It was heavy and tiring work, and very much like Sailor Dee, Ando was much stronger than he looked, and his quiet and gentle nature actually meant that the two got along rather well, talking to each other quietly while constantly on the lookout for the pack of Centifears. Sailor Dee knew that he was sure to miss his company if – when – they left the planet.

Mace Knight was the one telling the group exactly what they needed for repairs, and it wasn’t too much of a concern if the materials were raw: everything for smithing and forging was all back at the Halberd, but it would be much more efficient if it was not and they could begin with reparations as hastily as possible. Meta Knight had also offered to help with hauling but was immediately met with shakes of heads and ‘you need to save your energy for the flying!’. He had tried to argue, but the servants and Sato were having none of it – no-one wanted him to exhaust himself, especially since the effects of the poison were still prevalent on his system and would be for a while.

After they had brought the first batch of materials and had loaded them into a sort of bag with a net to carry them, Fulica flew up and grasped it with her claws, looking down at Meta Knight. “How’re you gonna help, Meta Knight? ‘Can’t see any way you can fly.” She raised an eyebrow at him with suspicion but – as some noticed – it wasn’t edged in her usual fire. Meta Knight did not answer, but his purple cape once more transformed into his draconian, white-clawed wings: and with a few, almost lazy flaps, he was up in the air and his gloved hand had grasped the carrying net. Sailor Dee noticed that Fulica had very uncharacteristically gone still, staring at him with her curved beak slightly open, which then curled into a smirk.

“It is a long journey back to my warship. If you wish to have a break along the way, then I will not object.” Meta Knight dipped his head; his rich, deep bass pertinent and sincere. “I will certainly be told off by my knights if I do not take a break. You need not worry about any threats, as I am well enough to deal with any that may arise.”

“I’m… sure ya are…” Her eyes were half-lidded, and her voice turned very, very smooth, making Meta Knight tilt his head at her change of tone but he did not question it. Ando gave a chuckle beside Sailor Dee as they both watched as her face go a little pink when he spoke directly to her for the first time. He already suspected what was making her blush as he’d seen people react like this before, multiple times. It was very entertaining to watch, actually – especially at how self-conscious Meta Knight became and how he tried to hide it.

“Is she flirting with him? I never knew that Meta Knight would be Fulica’s type. It’ll be interesting to see her interact with Captain Vul, the captain of our ship who’s also like her in terms of appearance and personality. I feel like those two would get on really well, even though he’s crustier than toast made by our good lord himself.” Mace Knight mumbled to both behind him.

“I know Fulica. If he were similar to her in terms of personality, then I don’t think she would get along with him. They would clash. And argue constantly.” Ando mused quietly, raising an eyebrow when Sailor Dee burst into a fit of giggles.

Cryston put his head in his arms from the weariness this forensic investigation had had on his mind. The phrase ‘A traitor is in your midst’ kept encircling his head, and it was the only thing that kept him going alongside a sleep just good enough last night (slumber had been difficult with new ideas and inspiration continually entering his thoughts) and the Halberd’s entire stock of coffee. However, they had very recently had a breakthrough. Going through the computer’s artefacts, they had found evidence as to what had corrupted the scanners. It was an external device that had been plugged in, and they were very close to finding out what that was. “This is bad.” He kept muttering to himself, typing away. “Really bad.”

Everyone’s eyes were bleary from searching and staring at the screen all day, but they knew it had to be done as this was one of the most serious cases that they ever had to investigate. Inoue had browsed the main operating system artefacts, pointing to where Cryston should prioritise searching through and he made sure that he carried it out. Every device that was plugged into the computer had its unique identification and manufacture code stored, even though the perpetrator deleted evidence that the device had been plugged in from the settings and from somewhere as low-level as the logs (which the person had done), and the Kibble, the Wheelie and the Meta-Knight were now checking out the most reliable area that he could gain some information and that could give him a clue to what was plugged in and where it came from.

Cryston watched Trident Knight navigate to the currently stored identification and manufacture numbers and copy the most recent addition to the list, searching up for historical evidence of the device being plugged in in the control room before. He heard Inoue give a sigh next to him when the search came up negative a few minutes later. It was never that easy. “Try searching the entire database. He could have plugged it in somewhere else in the Halberd.”

“That’ll take ages…” He complained in a mutter, taking a determined swig of his coffee, but complied anyway – it was important to check everywhere else when no results came up where it was most expected. He changed the output settings and sent the modified request to the computer. Shutting his eyes while waiting for progress, it was just over ten minutes that the computer beeped to tell him that it had come up with other entries that the device had been plugged in. All of the entries seemed to come from a certain area, a certain room, that only two people had access to…

“Dear Nova…”

Trident Knight slammed his fist on the table. Inoue edged backwards with a quick ‘I’ll be back’ and raced out of the room. Cryston put his hand to his face, staring at the screen that glared back with the result of who was behind all of this, his ears almost not registering the call from Captain Vul, telling him that he could just about see – from the now misted glass that lined the front of the Halberd’s bridge – that two beings, one unknown and one definitely familiar, were carrying something that hung beneath them and were steadily approaching. “Wait, it’s Sir Meta Knight?! Thank goodness he’s all right…”

Adding to the strain that the investigation had on the party in the Halberd, everyone in the control room had begun to grow anxious when the Knight and his followers that had tagged along did not return to the Halberd on the same day that they had crashed. The planet was overrun with demon-beasts – which they had discovered in the first few hours of the investigation – and so, they had reassured themselves that he had probably found some shelter and rested for the forthcoming day. It was everyone’s assumption that the small group had been ambushed, though no-one doubted the Meta-Knights’ abilities and their leader, yet they hoped in their hearts that he had come out of a possible encounter alive. Ah, yes. This was certainly the best place for Sailor Dee to have ‘field experience’. 

Trident Knight gave a sharp tilt of the head to beckon the Sir Kibble to accompany him to meet their superior, and Cryston tagged along obediently, blinking the strain out of his eyes and yawning. As they approached the entrance of the Halberd, he straightened his posture in a manner that was suitable to greet his commander knowing that Meta Knight loathed laziness to an almost obsessive degree. Along with another reason considering the incompetence of Dreamland’s governing body, the Knight once attempted to invade his own kingdom to ‘end Dreamland’s lazy lifestyle’ which had been foiled by his own student, Kirby. Cryston hadn’t been serving Meta Knight when that had happened, but he had heard the rumours. He knew next to nothing about it, as there was an unspoken rule against mentioning that failure in the Halberd, even amongst themselves. It was one of the reasons why the some of the citizens of Dreamland saw the Knight as something of an outcast, but many (including the king that Meta Knight had wanted to usurp) had forgiven him and generally he was now greatly admired in the kingdom due to his many services in protecting his land as was expected of an elite knight.

Trident Knight pressed the red button on the side of the Halberd’s main door to exit, which slid open with a whoosh. The two could see the flapping of two pairs of wings as the swordsman himself landed along with an unfamiliar Birdon that sported blue and red feathers that graced their form. The said Birdon was now staring up at the Halberd in awe, her deep brown eyes taking in the majestic battleship after they had landed with a strange baggage of something. Cryston stared as Meta Knight stumbled, falling to his knees, his wings resting either side of him. Trident Knight hesitated next to the Sir Kibble, considering if he should help him up, but realised that he would most definitely refuse. Cryston, however, ran to help the Knight up only to have a gloved hand raised in front of him in a manner that said that he was fine getting up on his own: It was almost a minute before the warrior righted himself, turning his wings back to his cape.  

Trident Knight placed a fist to his chest and gave a deep bow to his leader in typical military protocol, followed by Cryston, who took a step back and saluted. ‘Welcome back, my Lord.’ He signed, making the Birdon frown as she’d probably expected him to talk. ‘Were you successful in your quest for supplies?’

“Thank you. I was indeed successful; however, I must admit that the journey was not without its… twists and turns.” Meta Knight cleared his throat. If he was exhausted, he hid it well. “I would perhaps not be here if it were not for the assistance of a few inhabitants of this planet.”

The purple-clad knight tilted his head slightly, his hands forming one single word. ‘Clarify?’

“What he means is—” The Birdon on the left attempted to reveal in a protested voice by what the veteran meant by ‘twists and turns’, only to be interjected by a cold stare.

“Later.” The masked swordsman deadpanned, leaving no room for objection through his typical authoritative talent. His intimidating golden eyes flitted to the armoured Sir Kibble. “And greetings to you too, Cryston. Do you have any fruitful updates to your investigation?”

Cryston dipped his head politely to accept his acknowledgment. “Actually, yes, sir. You’ll be pleased to know that we found out who the traitor is, along with the evidence to prove it.” He looked to both sides, making sure no-one was listening in, before leaning in and nervously whispering his verdict to the Star Warrior.

It was evening. Mace Knight had been put on the lookout to check when Meta Knight would return, though she knew that he and the Birdon would probably have to rest before making his way back so it would be a while since she would see him again. Sure enough, it had been around twelve hours. She realised how blessed all of the Knights were to run into such compassionate people on such a hostile planet. She would help her master later when they would repay their kindness, and no-one could change her mind.

A shadow casted overhead, making the Knight look up in alarm and grip her flail tighter, before realising that it was actually Meta Knight and Fulica that had returned from their delivery expedition. Walking over for a respectful greeting, she smiled sadly under her purple helmet as she watched him fall to his knees – the Knight Commander really overworked himself. She was determined to force him to have a good rest later – a very long one, even though Meta Knight was the kind of person who felt as though he always had to do something and that merely sitting down was a complete waste of time. Sure, doing nothing was one of the main foundations of laziness but not when one did it sparingly for logical reasons.

“Good evening, milord… let me help…” Bending down due to their height difference, she looped an arm around his round body and helped him stand up. Despite accepting her help with a murmur of ‘Thank you, but I can right myself to a standing position’, they heard an annoyed growl sounding at the back of his throat at being treated like a helpless victim, but that did not hide the fatigue in his dim eyes. “Thanks, Fulica.” Mace spoke to the Birdon in the most appreciative tone she could muster. “We really appreciate it. You must be tired as well…”

“Don’ worry… Mace Knight, is it? I carry heavy loads all the time.” She watched the pair. Sure enough, there was nothing on her features that noted any sort of tiredness. Mace Knight was impressed; her stamina certainly was one of a soldier. “Ya get used to it. Plus, I wasn’ the one who was poisoned, eh?” Her eyes trailed on Meta Knight. “He’s the one tha’ needs a break.”

“Yes, exactly. Thank you. Don’t even try to convince me that you don’t overwork yourself, Sir—” Mace turned to her lord, but he did not seem to be listening to her. His eyes were a very dark and solid green which showed that his mind was on something else – completely lost in thought. Her heart leapt in a very irrational bout of fear when his eyes began to tinge with red. “Sir?”

“Silence.” His voice seemed to deepen, holding a dark resignation as his gloved hand warily touched the hilt of Galaxia by his side. “They are here. The one who has betrayed me. They assume that I physically have been weakened yet my resolve has never been stronger. I have battled all my life and shall continue to do so until death comes, and I may finally lay in peace.” His voice cracked for a second, unfocused, as if no-one were there. “I do not know why you have chosen this path. What brought you to betray me? Am I truly so naïve?” Then, his eyes turned a horrible dark crimson, withholding no emotion except pure rage as he snarled like a Wolfwrath. He slowly unfurled his demon wings which almost quadrupled his length across, his gaze focusing directly on the group, staring them down like an archangel prepared to deliver his judgement.

It was no wonder that Mace Knight’s heart was in her throat, tight with fear, unable to move as if he’d cast a spell on her, repeatedly clenching and unclenching the green grass beneath her.

The female knight never recalled being truly afraid of her leader before. Sure, she’d been nervous of him, but that was because of his reputation and demeanour – no sane person couldn’t be. But this… this was something else. The final straw. Something – perhaps a thread binding his sanity together – had snapped inside him. She’d never seen him like this and was sure that if she tried to stop him, she would probably end up getting impaled with the sacred sword. But if she didn’t stop him… he would end up doing something he’d regret later on.

He brandished his weapon, tiredness completely forgotten, eyes narrowed slits with a new kind of rage. He looked almost… monstrous. “Face me for the coward you are, you who contemplate betrayal with your artificial intelligence. For only one of us shall come out of this unscathed!”

The group barely saw it. A bright, shimmering light rang out, ear-piercing as a legendary sacred sword clashed with one of similar colour, lightning flashing, illuminating the inky night with a deafening ring until it died down and Mace Knight was able to uncover her eyes.

“Praise be to the Noble Haltmann.” Came the simple answer, monotonous, unemotional.

“Coward, you coward!” Mace Knight’s shock made her eyes widen in horror, simply unable to see her master like this. “How could you!”

“Then may you join them in destruction… Meta Knight thundered, his voice beyond mad.

“…Javelin Knight…”

The Knight Commander’s swings were erratic, uncalculated, disorganised, because that wasn’t the priority right now. But they held strength like no other. Dark tendrils curled at the tips of his wings as strike after strike after strike after strike was slashed at his robotic servant – former servant – and he could barely keep up with his wrath. Over the years, the robotic knight’s artificial intelligence has attempted to learn the Knight’s technique, which were always so clean, refined, and elegant, slightly altering his moves depending on the enemy. But brute force was one that the Knight never used. It was just pure strength, fuelled by anger...

Meta Knight growled in his furious determination as they clashed weapons, lifting into the air with a single flap, striking again with unmatched speed and kicking him to a nearby tree. He pulled in his wings in and dives towards his opponent with unmatched, and he barely had enough time to roll out of the way until the Knight delivers another barrage of strikes, releasing a snarl with every one he hit. He fluently dodges a laser beam that Javelin shoots at him, but underestimates the size, and it just grazes his wing. He draws back with a hiss, but otherwise ignores the pain.

Javelin Knight begins to charge up a beam in his visor. Meta Knight notices this, and throws Galaxia at the robot which embedded in the ground after narrowly missing him, forcing him to abandon his charged-up beam, but the Knight teleports in front of him—

“S-s-stop, m-master. Please…” Javelin Knight whispered in a glitchy voice; his tone mournfully forced out from his damaged vocal box. “I-it w-w-was not I-I-I w-w-who—”

—and grabbed him by where his throat would be, one hand almost crushing the metal pipe that connected his body to his head, pulling Galaxia out of the ground, knocking his javelin away which skidded across the floor and he charged his weapon up with a sword beam, preparing to unleash the final attack and wishing to end the traitor once and for all with hateful eyes—

“SIR, STOP, PLEASE!”

—His glare widening, swirling with white, when he heard a shrill voice scream, causing him to lower his sword which had a small orange paw lying on the hilt—

“That’s n-not the M-Meta Knight we all know.” Sailor Dee had tears running down his face, shaking profusely out of terror, but he didn’t retaliate. Meta Knight’s head snapped to him in eyes white out of complete shock, tinged with red. He slowly releases the robot, who fell to the floor, his metal pipe bent and sparking. He tries to move, but Meta Knight places an armoured foot to hold the soldier in place. He doesn’t try to move again, knowing that he would get sliced in half with no hesitation. “They tried to break you before… but you endured; you… you lived and grew stronger. P-Please don’t let those… those efforts be in vain.”

“How dare you interfere.” He hadn’t even raised his voice. Meta Knight’s tone was so dangerous that Sailor Dee jumped back, his entire body quivering when those wrathful eyes stared him to the ground.

“S-sir, I didn’t…” The servant shook his head, unable to stop his eyes from flitting to the sacred golden weapon clutched tightly in the warrior’s fist before continuing. “Y-you know… you know I’d never disobey your command.” When the Knight stayed silent, the Waddle Dee dared to continue, swallowing thickly. “M-Maybe… maybe there’s more to this betrayal then we think. Maybe he was threatened or something… I don’t know. It would be useful to interrogate him first.”

There was a deafening silence as Meta Knight silently stood there, considering options with smouldering eyes fixed on Sailor Dee the entire time. His eyes then snapped to the Meta-Knights and inhabitants, who had gathered outside to see the commotion – they seemed to tense up fearfully as his eyes trailed on them. He stayed as still as a statue for what seemed like an hour, just milling his options through his head.

His eyes then dimmed, still that burning red. His voice lowers, flat with no emotion, yet that was somehow more reassuring then the demon’s rage they had watched him experience just a few moments ago.

“Slaying him was not what I intended to do.” His words were daggers, one after another. “You doubt my ability to retain my moral reasoning even in anger? Have I truly sunk so low in your eyes?” And with a flash, his sword had melted through the metal contraptions that Javelin Knight used for mobility, rendering him helpless for travel. 

“Guard him.” The Knight shortly addressed his squires, sharply turning around and wrapping himself with his newly transformed cape, walking steadily back to the mounds that the crew had resided just moments ago. Everyone stumbled to make way, not wanting to be in even the scrutiny of a knight that had almost demolished one of his own servants. “I shall rest for a short while before heading back to the Halberd.”

Everyone watched him as he stepped inside the building and whipped around the corner, his cape fluttering behind him.

A tense, shocked quietness formed like a raincloud over the group, and many found themselves still staring at where the Knight had entered the mound. Axe and Mace Knight walked towards Javelin, and both gave him an affectionate pat on the shoulder as they stood next to the fallen squire, standing either side with weapons at the ready.

“I’m going inside.” His eyes teary, the sailor stood up and mirrored the Knight’s steps towards the quaint mount and lifted the trapdoor to go inside. After he entered he turned left, finding a seat, and sitting down. He heard Sato following him, crying out ‘Wait!’ but he didn’t turn to her until she’d appeared in his line of sight. He just wanted to contemplate what had happened – to collect himself before he performed his next action. She stood two metres away from him for a few seconds, finding the right words to forward to him.

“Dear Nova…” Sato was the first to break the silence, approaching Sailor Dee and placing a small hand on his shoulder but with a moment’s hesitation. He no longer seemed scared; but rather he had a sorrowful expression cast upon his face. “S-Sailor Dee, are you… are you okay? Did he hurt you? Gosh, he’s terrifying. What happened? Why was he so mad?”

The Waddle Dee exhaled. And inhaled. And exhaled once more. He took a small moment to collect himself. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.” He cleared his throat, his light cheek marks reddening. “It turns out he was the traitor that made us crash on this planet in the first place. But none of us know why that had happened before a crewmate back at the ship realised that someone had purposely sabotaged the system.” His voice quietened slightly as he sunk further into the seat.

Sato looked down at the floor. Her expression revealed the cogs that were turning in her mind, as she and Sailor Dee attempted to make sense of the situation. “Why would your crew member betray you? Did something happen – like a disagreement – between him and your Leader?”

“No… not that I can remember.” The young servant mumbled. “He seemed completely genuine. He behaved as he always did — not quite human-like considering he’s a robot, but realistic enough for his standards. Maybe that’s what made it so easy for him to betray us.”

“I can’t imagine what that must feel. Especially for Sir Meta Knight.” Her eyes clouded with sympathy. “I’m sure Javelin Knight is a valued member of the crew.”

“He’s been with us for so long. I just wish I can help him and tell him that it’ll be okay. But, how can I?” Sailor Dee gave a shaky sigh. “He’s gone through so much and finds it hard to trust people. With every betrayal he experiences, the more he prevents himself from forming any sort of friendship. I want to tell him that he can trust me and the other Meta-Knights, but I know he’ll harbour some sort of suspicion towards us for as long as he lives now. Honestly, I will too, but I’ll soon forgive and move on. The Leader’ll hold it against… well, not just Javelin, but all of us. And himself. He’s always had this huge burden as a protector and commander and it’ll only get worse now.” Sailor Dee met the Batamon’s tree bark eyes. “Since he won’t trust us with tasks he usually would: he’ll just end up doing them himself.”

A short pause. Then: “Why don’t you tell him how you feel about it? I think someone like him needs reassurance, even if he tells you he doesn’t need it and acts all strong and stoic. He may not believe you, but at least he’ll think about it.” Sato advised gently. “Because he’s clearly upset about the whole thing. You seem to be quite well versed on his feelings. You should go and talk to him.”

Sailor Dee expression fell slightly. He touched his hands together, looking down. “Honestly, I just have this gut feeling that Javelin didn’t betray us for some random reason… one of the reasons being that he’s a robot. Something’s really off about this whole thing and I don’t know what; I think it’s really important to find the motivation for it, but I can’t think of anything which is why I’m so suspicious about it.” He realised he was rambling, but he didn’t care – he simply wanted to get his point across. “I don’t want to tell Lord Meta Knight that, though — I’m sure that’s the last thing he wants to hear.”

The healer shook her head. “I don’t think so. If someone betrayed me… I’d want to find out why they betrayed me, like you said. He may think it’s false hope, but if you share the same suspicion then maybe… you know. You’ll come up with a realisation.”

“…” Sailor Dee stared at her for a good moment. It only took a few seconds to realise that she was right: more then she knew. Over time, Sailor Dee had listened to a few of the Knight’s ruminations, being one of the very few allowed to glimpse into his feelings: because if there was one thing that Sailor Dee excelled at, it was empathy. He may not have truly understood what his commander went through on a daily basis, but he recognised the gravity of his experiences and even felt like he carried the burden from time to time. It was what made Sailor Dee the practically the most trusted member on board: which was evident in the fact that he was the only one (and not just among the crew) that had seen what lay under Meta Knight’s mask multiple times.

He blinked and nodded once. His mind was made up. “You’re right. Thanks, Sato.” He exhaled a deep breath, acknowledging the gravity of what he was about to do. The wall opposite him suddenly seemed extraordinarily interesting to look at and his consciousness was already resisting. “Do you know where he went?”

A kind smile formed on her features, moving aside when she received his hint. “I’m glad I could help. But no, sorry. You’re welcome to look around if you wish, though– I trust you enough.”

“Thanks… you really helped. Okay…” He dragged the last syllable out to empathise his hesitance. “Let’s do this. Wish me luck.” He chuckled sadly, waving behind him, and turning the corner. He checked a few rooms on his way, but the warrior was nowhere to be found. This made Sailor Dee’s heart plummet slightly – when Meta Knight didn’t want to be found, he made sure of it.

“Sir Meta Knight?” Sailor Dee called out at a medium pitch, feeling too awkward to exclaim any louder. He traversed further across the walkway, attempting to locate his elusive master, turning every corner. “Sir?”

“I am right here, Sailor Dee.”

Sailor Dee froze and turned around. He was right behind him once again, his amber eyes bright and piercing once more, but they revealed nothing — there was no evidence whatsoever as to what had occurred outside; it was honestly very concerning as to how easily Meta Knight was able to hide his emotions. And Sailor Dee decided to just get to the point – something he didn’t usually do unlike the one who stood opposite him, wrapped tightly in his cape. “L-Look. I just wanted to say that we’re all behind you.” His voice started out shaky, but grew more confident with every word he spoke. “You don’t have to let this betrayal get in the way of trusting in us. I’m going to be honest here and say that I think something – or someone – is behind this. It’s wishful thinking, I know, but… something feels wrong. Javelin wouldn’t just betray us like this.”

A very long, very deafening silence. “You comprehend the weight of your words, do you not, young one?” Meta Knight’s bass was as cold as ever.

Sailor Dee swallowed hard. He suddenly felt very foolish. “Yes… Yes, my Lord.” Looking away, he couldn’t really meet the Knight’s eyes. “But you’ve always taught me to follow my instincts, and that’s what I’m trying to do.”

The Lone Swordsman turned and beckoned his servant with a glance, who ran up to his side and fell into step. “I will not dismiss your claim.”

“You… you won’t?” He almost faltered to a stop to look up at the warrior, startled. “But your reaction when you engaged with Javelin in battle… honestly, I thought you were going to completely decimate him. You were… you were really scary. Forgive me, but I thought you were going to lose control or something. I’m sorry I underestimated you, sir.”

“Do not apologise when it should be myself doing so. You had much nerve to approach me in my vengeful state.” Meta Knight’s powerful voice softened, giving a sidelong glance. “I will not dismiss your claim due to the fact that you are correct in the belief there is almost always a motivation for treachery. Emotional betrayal stems from believing the third-party has a stronger stance on a certain ideology, but I do not believe that was Javelin Knight’s motivation. Either way, further investigation is crucial.”

Sailor Dee nodded slowly, realising that he couldn’t put it into words any better than that. If he could pick one of the swordsman’s traits for himself, it would be his sharpness — picking up things extremely quickly, taking any situation and breaking it down into structured, logical reasoning. “How… how do you do it, sir?”

This made Meta Knight tense for a split second. “What do you mean?”

What did he mean? Sailor Dee wasn’t even sure himself. “I-I don’t know. I mean, a-a long-time member of the crew just betrayed you and you’re rightfully angry, but then you just… take all of it like it’s some chance to grow. Even when you were poisoned, you were going to die, and you just dismissed it like it was some sort of training exercise whereas I’d end up having an eternal fear that something would attack. If… if someone very close outright betrayed me then I’d probably end up just sitting alone in the corner and crying. Is that why you keep everyone so far from you? So the pain becomes easier?”

Meta Knight halted in his step, his eyes fixed forward, unreadable as usual. But there was a way in which he stiffened and stopped suddenly — subtle differences that he’d taken a lot of time around the Knight to decipher — told Sailor Dee that he had struck a nerve. He scolded himself as to what right he had to say what he had just said.

“The more you age throughout the years, my friend–” The Leader began in a murmur, and Sailor Dee was shocked to hear the gentleness in his tone. “—the more you learn how to deal with those situations, but it does not necessarily become easier.” His eyes glimmered with some foreign emotion, before continuing in his step. “After three hours when my energy replenishes, I must head off. The crew back at the Halberd are waiting.”

“H-How do you know that?” For some reason after this little talk, the servant felt like he understood much more about his Leader then he ever did before. And he felt peaceful because of it, as if one aspect of the tension from recent events had lifted off his shoulders. “Or are you just guessing?”

“Guessing? I do not ‘guess’.” Meta Knight simply tilted his head, and the Waddle Dee imagined a smile set below that silver mask when he replied: “But is speculation a crime?”

Chapter Text

Anxiousness.

That was all that two certain knaves on Popstar were feeling right now.

It had been just over a couple of days since Sir Meta Knight had left Dreamland and put them in charge of patrolling the land for any dangers, and were both given a small comms unit so their master could contact them when they touched down on Ripple Star or the arise of external troubles, and vice versa. The problem was, they hadn’t received anything from the Halberd since they’d left, which made Sword and Blade Knight immediately concerned. Meta Knight was always one to keep his word and very few things in this instance would make him break it.

One of the things was that they were still on their way, however that couldn’t be true – their master made sure that they would arrive much earlier than the meeting that the planet had scheduled, and the Halberd’s powerful engines and lack of air resistance in space meant that it would take around twelve hours for the vessel to reach its destination. That only left one other viable option; something had happened to the Halberd.

After multiple instances of trying to contact the ship using their own communication devices, checking their own devices to see if they were at fault and trying to establish a connection with Javelin Knight’s own form of communication, it confirmed their suspicions. They were thinking of using Kirby’s Warp Star to try and visit nearby planets to search for where the crew could currently be, but there were comms stations all over the surface that the crew could have used. The fact that they didn’t do that meant that they weren’t currently in the Gamble Galaxy.

Meta Knight’s power allowed him to fly at incredible speeds – as fast as the Halberd itself, even – back to Popstar and tell his apprentices what had happened. There were two explanations as to why he wouldn’t have done this: First, a commander never leaves his soldiers behind in a possibly hostile planet. Secondly, the Knight was still healing from the mechanisation incident – flying now tired him much faster than usual and he’d have to make multiple stops to reach Popstar. Of course, he was physically much better now than six months ago but making such a huge journey would be debilitating to his health.

“Are you sure you’ve checked that the outbound connection is routed to the correct destination—”

“Oh for goodness sake, stop asking me that question and check it yourself if you’re so paranoid.” Blade snapped in the way she did when she was stressed, rolling her eyes. She then gave a deep sigh, squeezing her eyes shut for a few moments before opening them again. It was certainly a relief that there had been no problems that had arisen in Dreamland at the rest of the Halberd crew’s absence, but she still felt the weight of foreboding that loomed over the two apprentices like a grey thundercloud. She rubbed the temples of her forehead. “Sorry.”

“S’fine.” Her brother replied drearily. “It’s my fault I keep repeating the same question. I know that I’m 100% sure that you did check it, but my brain is like: ‘Ask her again, because she may not have done it’, you know?” Sword then paused for a moment, and yawning, resting his head in his arms and feeling anything but relaxed. “I think I’ve lost my mind. Anyway, do you know if Kirby’s come back yet?”

“Haven’t we all? And no, I told him to report back to us when he’s finished the patrol, then he can go to sleep.” Blade answered swiftly. Before their teacher had left, he had tasked them to train his young and unnervingly powerful apprentice, Kirby. Sir Meta Knight, knowing that their breadth of knowledge of his ‘Copy’ Abilities — the unique power that Kirby withheld which allowed him to imitate and weaponise an object by (quite literally) sucking it up — was nowhere near as extensive as his own, he instead tasked them to teach Kirby how to spar with a sword, but without using his Sword Copy Ability. The arrangement worked them fine and it was an absolute pleasure seeing the child progress steadily.

“I think we’d better get to sleep after Kirby comes back, too.” Sword stated, being the voice of reason. His brows furrowed, not turning to look at her with his head still in his arms. “Do you mind not making that scratching noise?”

“Huh?” Blade frowned at him. “What scratching noise? Are you going insa— oh wait, I can hear it too…” A strange ‘pfft’ sound was emitting north of her general direction, she realised as she listened harder. She leaned forward, realising that the strange, white scratching and popping noise was actually coming from the communication device opposite her, and that it hadn’t made any noise since the Halberd had left Dreamland.

Her heart leapt painfully, standing up so forcefully that Sword jumped from the sound that the chair made when it dragged behind her. “Sword! I think I can—” She stuttered out, a lump in her throat. Her eyes shot to the red light that signalled whether the connection was active – it was flickering fast between on and off. She barely heard Sword Knight run over to her, his momentary sleepiness gone – drowned out by both the excitement and relief that it could be him. “Hello?” She grabbed the microphone and put it near her lips. “Blade Knight here, do you copy?”

A swish and crackle of static sounding through the speakers, and Blade attempted again, her gaze constantly flicking to the red light. “Do you copy? Sword Knight and Blade Knight, calling the Halberd—”

“Ssh- Meta-ssssh—” The device crackled slightly due to limited bandwidth and low latency, but the two knaves could easily make out their master’s voice as the connection righted itself, “—Knight here. I sssh-an hear you.”

“Lord Meta Knight! Sir, you’re alright!” The two knights cried out in unison, scrambling to adjust the microphone so they could be heard better by the opposite. “Y-yes, we can hear you! What happened, sir? We were so worried!”

“I will explain later. It’s a lengthy tale not appropriately told on this medium.” The Knight spoke calmly, albeit with humour in his strong voice. “I trust you two are faring well?”

“Heh, honestly, sir, we were worried sick about you and the rest of the crew! You just suddenly disappeared and didn’t contact us, so we knew that something had gone wrong. So we’d say we were feeling very relieved to hear your voice again.” They paused to take a breath and heard Meta Knight gently laugh as if he were amused at their enthusiasm. “How are you and the rest? Are you back on Ripple Star, or somewhere else entirely?”

“Fear not, we are all perfectly safe. I’m afraid that we are… stranded at present. Where is Kirby?”

The two apprentices faced each other, seeing mirrored concern. “Some good news and bad news, at least. Glad to hear you’re all okay. Kirby is currently out on patrol – he should be back very soon. Do you wish to talk to him, my Lord?”

“You may pass this message onto him as it concerns both.” The mic crackled again. “I will tell you our current coordinates, and these instructions. Now listen very carefully; this is what I wish for you to do…”

 “Before you go, Sir Trident, could you just pass me that cable over there… thanks.” Cryston’s hands moved swiftly across the keyboard. He turned his body and gave a swift salute to his superior after they’d shaken hands – the silent warrior had been called to a meeting with the commander for an unspecified reason. “Your help has been invaluable. I hope the boss rewards you in some way because you really deserve it.”

Knowing that the Sir Kibble didn’t understand his non-verbal method of communication, the knight put his palm on his heart and gave a slow nod in gratitude – a common way to display that he was flattered before he turned the corner to make his way to where he was summoned. Inoue had gone to assist in some other task somewhere else in the Halberd, as her main job wasn’t in the control room. 

Cryston yawned and stretched, thankful for the good, long lie-in that his superior had graciously granted him. He sipped his fourth cup of coffee as he pondered the new task had been assigned to him – to figure out whether there had been anything suspicious that had fuelled Javelin Knight’s traitorous deeds. He’d taken to the task straight away, feeling genuinely honoured that he’d been trusted with such a momentous assignment – the outcome determined the traitor’s fate. It was that significance which motivated him, along with the nagging thought of a pay rise, maybe. Hopefully. He didn’t want to keep his hopes up. Just be humble and freakin’ do your job, Cryston.

Due to Javelin being a robot, plugging him in to a computer was all it took until he could start investigating. Lifting a hidden flap on the back of his head, he leant down to take the five-millimetre-thick cable which Trident had handed him and connected it to one of the hidden twin plug sockets. Attaching the wire to the computer and watching the pop-up of Javelin’s internal files appear on the screen, it dawned on him that he now had access to every single one of the knight’s memories, thoughts, and he could delete one line of code and it would go all haywire since he had the open-source access key to edit his core programming. Sir Meta Knight had strictly forbidden him to change and view anything ‘unrelated’ however, and he wasn’t about to incur the veteran’s demonic wrath because of a vague sense of curiosity.

Yep, he’d heard all about what had happened when the Lone Swordsman was told of what had happened. Cryston’s insides panged with sympathy as he glanced at Javelin’s dormant form, the bottom half completely missing and clearly melted off. He didn’t want to imagine how scared he must have felt… if the robot could indeed feel any emotion. Cryston wasn’t too acquainted with the Meta-Knights as they didn’t come down here often, and was often aware of things that happen because of rumours spread among the various workers upon the Halberd.

Hearing a shuffling noise, the Kibble turned around, waving to the prong-helmeted knight that sauntered in, a cup of tea and cake in hand. Mace Knight handed a slice to the soldier at the desk, a smile in her voice as she greeted him. “For you. How are you getting on?”

He looked a little surprised at the kind gesture. “Good, thank you. And thank you very much for the cake; that’s very kind of you.” He dipped his head respectfully at the higher-ranking soldier, taking a bite of the cake. “Mmm. Just plugged Javelin in and I was about to start investigating.” As he’d done many times, he started looked through the main artifacts for proof of anomalies and indicators of compromise, glancing at his superior colleague. “How is Lord Meta Knight doing? I heard all about what happened… not meaning to pry, of course.”

“No worries. He’s understandably tired. If anything, I think he’s gone to have a rest. Or someone forced him – probably the latter.” They chuckled in unison. “On second thought, probably not. Zero self-preservation, I swear. And no-one forces the lord to do anything anyway.”

“Oh! Pardon me. That was our company's wonderful theme song, ‘The Noble Haltmann’…”

"I was so impressed... I gave him a complete remodel! And I hired him as a company security guard… I wonder what you’ll make of him… Model #M-7110… Mech—"

“S-Sir?”

Without a change in posture, Sir Meta Knight’s eyes snap open. Their light does not focus on his subordinate, instead staring without truly seeing directly at the broken trees that had been decimated by the Halberd’s sturdy metal hull at arrival. He held a silent, sidelong glance after a short moment, a few awkward seconds passing before Sailor Dee realised that it was an invitation to speak further.

“O-oh!” He exclaimed at the realisation. “Sorry to disturb you, master, um…” The Dee’s expression light up excitedly in a Waddle Dee ‘smile’, almost jumping on the spot. “But this is so important, I have such good news, which is definitely what we need right now, right?! Ohmygoodness sir, you’re not going to believe this, we have a massive breakthrough with the Javelin investigation and—”

“I cannot understand you. Steady on, young one.” Meta Knight raised a gloved hand, the austere response cutting the sailor’s ecstatic rambling. His gaze did not soften. “Steady on. Breathe.”

Sailor Dee nodded rapidly, cheeks flushed as he breathed in and out. He gulped once, calming down instantly when he faced the swordsman’s annoyed gaze. “Sorry. Sorry, sir. Force of habit.” He put his two nubs together, faintly trembling with enthusiasm. “Right. So I was saying that Cryston and Mace have found some really important information about the Javelin investigation. Basically, it turns out Javelin really was speaking the truth when he, um, begged you to not kill him. Something; or maybe someone; was controlling him remotely.”

 Meta Knight froze. His eyes flashed a rare white in shock; if only briefly. “Are you sure? How can this be?”

 “They’re sure, milord.” He clarified firmly. “Very sure. In fact, they’ve geolocated the rough origin of the connection source, but it’s rough and around a certain radius. It won’t be hard at all to explore that area, though. More importantly, though, they’ve analysed the virus sample and it immediately matched with the same one that Haltmann Works injected into the network when they took over. At least that’s what the control room gang told me. It means Javelin’s innocent! Everything that he did – the sabotage, the virus injection, purposely crashing down on this ship if we didn’t survive the meteor shower… he didn’t do it! Isn’t that great?!”

The old soldier watched him, his powerful gaze not faltering as he gave a brief nod. Sailor Dee felt something inside him sink when his stare hardened even further, as if he did not see the wonderful significance of this news. “In truth, it concerns me.”

“What?” Sailor Dee thought this was so absurd, he momentarily forgot his formality. He knew that Meta Knight was paranoid at times, certainly, and that he never rendered his conclusions without great forethought. However, he’d just received some wonderful news that one of his apprentices was no longer guilty of a crime and now he was acting like it was nothing. It frustrated him, he had to admit. If he were a lesser tempered individual, he perhaps would have lashed out by now. “You… you’re not glad that Javelin is innocent?!” He cried. “Do you not believe them? Did…” He was suddenly struck with a terrible thought. “Did you want him to be convicted?”

“Of course I am glad that Javelin is innocent!” Meta Knight suddenly hissed, eyes flashing at the first few words, somehow looming over his servant despite being marginally taller. He then relented, sighing deeply, and placing two fingers over where his forehead would be. “It is unlike you to make such a claim, but entirely excusable. These last few periods have been difficult for you and the rest of the Meta-Knights.”

“Oh my gosh. I’m so sorry, sir… I shouldn’t… I didn’t…” Sailor Dee whispered. From the way the veteran bowed his head, the way he stooped slightly, he seemed to look one thousand years older at this very moment as he silently collected himself to speak again. “That was completely my fault. None of this is your fault, none of it. It’s been the most difficult for you, you know! Stop blaming yourself for everything, sir. It was all Haltmann Works.”

They both knew that this was not just about the claim that had been made earlier on. It paved a way for a tense quietness.

“A connection cannot be formed without a host and a client.” Meta Knight says grimly. “The connection must also stay alive as this virus is executed remotely.”

Sailor Dee’s eyes widened at that, already hypothesizing.

“If the report is true and the virus matches, then I regret to inform that it could mean that Haltmann Works may be re-emerging and are planning to reinitiate attack. It is an alarming matter but expected – they were a trillion-dollar company and were monetarily more than capable of producing backups. Dreamland is once again in peril.” He almost spat, beckoning his servant to follow him with a side tilt of the head.

The Dee felt his heart sink horribly, throat tightening as he obediently followed his leader. “It would have been easier without their best defender, right? You destroyed a quarter of their forces last time before you were captured, but if you had…” He surmised, letting out a small ‘oh’.

“Precisely.” His tone was grave. “If—”

“Poyo!”

They both halted. Meta Knight turned sharply and was shocked to see a round, pink thing waddling towards him, a broad, joyful grin on its young and heart-meltingly loveable features. It babbled a string of ‘poyo’s and ambled up to its mentor, taking a fistful of his cape that he’d wrapped himself with out of instinct and snuggling up to him. The sight made Sailor Dee almost burst out laughing – Kirby was extremely affectionate when it came to people close to him, and especially when it came to Meta Knight despite knowing that he did not share that desire for affection at all. “Medakni…”

“Kirby—!” He pulled his cape away in what would have seemed to be an extremely cold manner to anyone watching that were not familiar with this sight, even though the warrior was genuinely pleased to see him. The child did not relent and instead stubbornly clung on, digging his face into the velvety cloth. Sailor Dee resisted the urge to ‘aww’ at the scene. This was Meta Knight being gentle – anyone else who dared to make physical contact with the Knightmare risked a sacred sword to the chest.

“He was very worried about you, Lord Meta Knight. Kept asking where you were and whether he could talk to you.” Sword Knight’s placid tenor voice failed to hide the humour he currently felt, and the relief and enthusiasm at seeing his master alright. The two bowed respectfully in front of their master, who returned their greeting. They waved at Sailor Dee, who waved back with a ‘hi guys!’.

Blade Knight actually let out a chuckle, her own sharper tone light yet sincere. “We were, too. We were up all night and that wasn’t an exaggeration. We did everything you told us to earlier and before you left. Including training the little guy.”

Meta Knight dipped his head in his stoic and serious manner, happy that they both didn’t bound over and hug him too. His eyes faded into a proud blue, however – infinitely thankful for such reliable and loyal subjects. “I am touched. It is much appreciated, thank you. I trust Kirby was no trouble for you.”

“Not at all, Lord Meta Knight – thanks to your discipline. No threats, blown-up buildings, destroyed planets, or anything like that.”

“Good.” Meta Knight hummed, looking discretely down at his young apprentice that was clinging on to him. The pink Star Warrior met his gaze adoringly with deep blue, starstruck eyes – the old Knight reached down and awkwardly patted the child on the head, aware of how many people were currently watching them. Kirby had been much more affectionate towards him for the past six months, after the whole mechanisation incident, and the swordsman wasn’t too thrilled with this arrangement. Despite this, his bright gaze softened. “I am happy to see you too. Now, unhand me.”

“Puyo poyo Copy Abiwities poyo.”

“I am aware, little one. You may tell me what you learnt afterwards.” He sighed, gently prying the child away from himself. Kirby giggled and happily bounded over to the two apprentices, who patted him. “I have matters to attend to. Sword, Blade and Kirby, please begin preparing for the reparation of the engine. I will inform you of all that has happened. And you, Sailor Dee.”

“At once, my Lord.” They said in unison, saluting. Kirby imitated them, and followed them, speaking to them about something indecipherable. The Halberd Commander shook his head as he watched the retreating trio before turning around, and it made Sailor Dee giggle. He was about to follow them before a question struck him, and it made him paused and turn around.

“Wait, master… before you go.” His expression turned serious again, switching back the topic that they were on before, rarely being the one to sombre the mood. “When are you going to tell Sword and Blade Knight about what happened with Sato and stuff, and, um, Haltmann Works?”

“I do not wish to worry anyone at present.” He replied. His resonant bass was calm. “But I will explain everything very soon. In regards to Haltmann Works, I will not formally declare this threat to King Dedede, nor to Kirby. This is something I wish to do alone, and something I am confident that I am able to. Dreamland does not need to go into a panic again.”

Sailor Dee didn’t ask for clarification; because he understood.

“Just one more thing… um… permission to speak freely, sir?”

Meta Knight turned to him in surprise. “Permission granted.”

“At least get some rest first.”

The Leader blinked, and his gaze turned a very pleasant pink in amusement, turning away from the sailor. He chuckled gently as he walked to the end of the corridor and disappeared around the corner, though not before leaving in his wake a beaming yet slightly bewildered Sailor Dee. The aide watched his superior thoughtfully, before he turned and slowly started walking towards his comrades.

Despite the new shadow of a hidden threat looming over the crew, the young Sailor decided to dismiss the thoughts for now; he didn’t want or need that negativity. He was sure that everything would be okay because, despite these recent and dramatic occurrences over the past few days, it had met those criteria thus far. He’d finally gotten some experience in the field and learnt much along the way. The Commander had recovered incredibly and everything under control… as he always did. Captain Vul was yelling at someone faintly in the background. Cryston, he heard, would be honoured in the (possible) form of a pay rise for his huge efforts in this investigation.

He took a deep breath, repeating that same line again in his head; relishing the simple, raw optimism he gleaned from these rush of events and mountainous tasks:

Everything would be okay.

The End.